


Breakthrough

by froppii



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Skating, Dogs, F/F, F/M, Four Continents Figure Skating Championships, ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating, M/M, Rayllum, artist, figure skating, figure skating AU, tdp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-04
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:01:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 29,617
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25709365
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/froppii/pseuds/froppii
Summary: Callum watched as the girl lifted her arms and began to move, gliding across the ice like a dancer on a stage. He saw her weight shift, and she jumped, spinning in the air thrice before landing back on her feet. It was mesmerizing, the way her arms rose and fell with the sequence, the balletic footwork as she moved. He’d seen Ezran watching clips of skaters before, their supple motions and dazzling costumes, but somehow, this felt different. It was as if she was trying to convey a message that only he could read. There was a story behind her movements; complicated emotions.That was it.He grabbed his sketchbook off of his lap and tucked his knee close, using it as a table. He began to draw.~Rayla Figure Skating AU
Relationships: Aanya & Ellis & Ezran (The Dragon Prince), Aanya & Ellis (The Dragon Prince), Aanya & Ezran (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Callum & Ezran (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Callum (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Ezran (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Gren (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Harrow (The Dragon Prince), Amaya & Janai (The Dragon Prince), Amaya/Janai (The Dragon Prince), Callum & Ezran & Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Callum & Ezran (The Dragon Prince), Callum & Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Ethari & Rayla & Runaan (The Dragon Prince), Ethari & Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Ethari/Runaan (The Dragon Prince), Rayla & Runaan (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 96
Kudos: 190





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Updates every other Sunday

The bakery door swung open, the sound of a bell tinkling through the small shop. Harrow had just finished placing the last of the lunch-time pastries in the display case. Sunlight streamed through the windows as Harrow turned to greet his sister-in-law. Her best friend, a young redheaded man, followed closely behind.

"Amaya! Haven't had you here in a while. The boys are upstairs still if you'd like to go get them."

Amaya moved her hands, her friend translating the sign language as she went.

"I figured you might get a little busy today," he translated, "Gren and I came to lend a hand.”

"Are you not working today?" Harrow asked as he tied his apron. He made sure to face Amaya as he spoke, allowing her to read his lips. 

"Not until later," Gren answered. "Not much for a couple security guards to- well, _guard_ on a Monday morning.

Amaya signed again. "I'll go get the boys while you two finish setting up down here."

~

Ezran and Callum sat across from each other at the front table of the bakery eating their lunch crepes. There were several other customers there, enjoying their lunch break or grabbing coffees for coworkers. 

“Ezran,” Harrow called from behind the counter, “you’re going to choke, slow down.”

Amaya caught Callum’s eye from the register and signed “he’s one to talk.”

Ezran turned around in his chair and mumbled something through his full cheeks. Callum sighed and translated.

“It’s ‘cause I agreed to drive him to the rink once we finished eating.” He looked at his brother. “If you choke, Bait gets your side of the room.”

Ezran swallowed. “My side of the _curtain,_ c’mon Callum, two different rooms. Hurry up and finish before all the good skates get rented.”

He took his last bite and ran his plate to his father, then scurried upstairs to grab his sweater. Callum shook his head and smiled. He brought his plate up to the counter and handed it to his father.

“Not hungry?” he asked, seeing the half-finished crepe.

“Could you just cover it and save it? I’ll finish it later since his majesty is feeling so impatient today.”

Harrow laughed as Ezran came prancing back down the stairs. He made straight for the door.

“Guess that’s my cue,” Callum said to his dad, taking his keys out of his pocket. 

“Have fun, you two.”

Callum smiled and followed after his brother, grabbing the bag containing his sketchbook from their table on the way. Heading out the door they passed by a tall woman with long twists who was on her way in, and Ezran remarked that she was beautiful. Callum was sure his aunt would be tripping over her own feet while they were gone.

~

Rayla sat down on a bench in the busy rink lobby, placing her duffel bag on the floor next to her and pulling out her Edea skates. Someone sat down on the opposite end of the bench and handed a young boy a few bills as she tied her laces and removed her blade guards. She watched the boy scurry to the front counter and ask for one pair of skates. She grabbed her phone out of her pocket and shrugged off her practice jacket- she didn’t feel like wearing it today. She walked across the rubber mat floor and opened the door to the skating area, then stretched out before taking to the ice. She did a few warm-up laps, careful to stay out of the way of the little kids waddling along the walls. She then found an empty place in the middle of the ice and took a breath. She put in her earbuds and put her playlist on shuffle before putting her phone in the zipper-pocket of her pants.

_Time to get back to work._

~

Ezran came back over to Callum and sat next to him. He put on his skates and tied the frayed laces tight.

“Did you see that girl? With the purple pants?”

Callum opened his sketchbook and took his pencil out of the spine. “What girl?”

“She was literally right next to you.”

“Oh.”

Ezran stood and double-checked his laces before slipping on his sweater.

“I think I’ve seen her before, maybe online or something. From what I could see those couple laps she did were real good. Don’t really get people like that around here.” Ezran raised an eyebrow at his brother. “She was pretty, too.”

“ _Pfft._ Cut it out and go have fun. I’ll be here whenever you wanna leave. Lemme know if you need anything from the concession stand.”

Ezran rolled his eyes and hobbled away, and Callum turned his attention to his sketchbook. He wasn’t all too sure why he brought it, he hadn’t been able to draw anything of substance in a while. He’d chalked it up to a bad art block. He looked out at the ice and saw that Ezran had already found a group of other kids around his age to blend right in with. He tended to do that. What really caught his eye, however, was a skater who’d taken to the center of the rink. She wore a black tank-top and long dark purple pants that contrasted her clean white skates. Probably the girl Ez was talking about. He watched as she lifted her arms and began to move, gliding across the ice like a dancer on a stage. He saw her weight shift, and she jumped, spinning in the air thrice before landing back on her feet. It was mesmerizing, the way her arms rose and fell with the sequence, the balletic footwork as she moved. He’d seen Ezran watching clips of skaters before, their supple motions and dazzling costumes, but somehow, this felt different. It was as if she was trying to convey a message that only he could read. There was a story behind her movements; complicated emotions. _That was it._

He grabbed his sketchbook off of his lap and tucked his knee close, using it as a table. He began to draw, moving his pencil across the paper with the same kind of resplendence the blades of the girl’s skates held. He didn’t keep track of what exactly he drew or where on the page he drew it. He just looked between the girl, the references saved on his phone, and his paper. He wished he could see her more clearly, he hated not being precise with details, but between the distance and the blur of her spinning, he would just have to make do.

Her energy changed suddenly, and she took out her earbuds. Callum put down his pencil and watched closely. 

~

Rayla took a breath. She’d struggled with her triple lutz for a while now. It was, after all, quite a difficult element, and she was sure that after taking an entire season off, she was going to mess it up. She hesitated, thinking for a split second that she shouldn’t jump right back into the hard stuff. She shook her head at herself; she’d waited long enough already. She built up momentum along a wide arc and extended a leg behind her. Exaggerating the outside of her blade, she planted the pick of the extended leg and vaulted into the air. She felt herself pre-rotate a little, which was new. It caught her off-guard, and she only managed just over two rotations before her foot touched down. Her pick caught on the ice and she fell forward. She quickly twisted and tucked her arms in, the side of her body hitting the ice _hard._ She sat up and rubbed her aching shoulder. There were several pairs of eyes on her as she got up and brushed the shredded ice off of herself. Looking around as she pulled herself together, she met the emerald green eyes of a boy sitting in the lobby on the other side of the plexiglass. He seemed to be about her age and was wearing a dull red scarf. He stared at her, his face full of awe. 

_Let’s go Rayla, get to work._

She pushed and fell into a step sequence.

~

 _Come_ on _!_ _Left hip_ around _!_

Rayla tried to compensate her rotation, but jerked too hard and felt herself fall out of form. 

As she skidded to a halt after failing the jump for the umpteenth time, an announcement came over the rink’s speakers, snapping her out of focus and making her realize she was now one of the only three people left in the rink.

“Attention skaters, the facility will be closing in ten minutes.”

She took two cooldown laps as everyone else exited, then left the rink.

She saw the young boy from earlier bringing his skates back to the counter, his mountain of hair bobbing with each step. She sat down on the same bench as before and pulled her duffel bag out from under it. She untied her skates and dried the blades with a cloth before putting on her guards and placing them in the bag. A pair of feet appeared in her field of vision and she looked up to meet the owner's face. _Scarf Guy._

The boy rubbed the back of his neck, looking at her awkwardly for a moment. "Er...can I help you?" she asked, shouldering her bag and standing. He was a couple inches shorter than her, but definitely around her age.

"Right! Uh-" he ran a hand through his tousled brown hair and pointed a thumb back at the young boy behind him, the one with the 'mountain of hair'. "My brother pointed you out and, uh, I just wanted to tell you, it was, uh, you were really fun to watch! The way you skated so...smoothly? Effortlessly? Yeah, I just um, I thought it was really amazing to watch."

Rayla blinked at him, not quite sure how to respond. This wasn't something she would have expected.

"Oh! Uh, thanks! That's...real nice of ya."

He smiled at her, then muttered "oh yeah". He took off the drawstring bag he was wearing and pulled out a sketchbook, and flipped to a page towards the back. 

"I've been having this nasty art block for a while, just a lack of motivation or something? But…"

He turned the sketchbook around and let her look at the page. They were just pencil sketches of a few poses and spins, but they were incredible. There was so much detail and care in every part of them, even the blank anatomy sketches. One of them looked like her, with the hair in a short messy braid. He'd drawn a costume, one she hadn't seen before, but one she was sure she would wear.

"But…" he continued, "who knows? Maybe I'll break out of it soon."

He put the sketchbook back in his bag and walked away with a smile and a wave, the boy he'd called his brother following closely behind.

~

Rayla got in her car and started the engine. It had been a while since someone recognized her like that. Sure, she was showered with compliments any time she used public skate hours for extra practice, but most of it was just people trying to flirt with her. Sometimes it was because people knew who she was and they wanted brownie points. Whatever the reason, it was always fake, people seeing her as just a body or a moneymaker, none of them actually knew what they were talking about. But this boy...well, he still had no clue what he was talking about, but it didn’t feel forced. It was _genuine_ praise and admiration from someone she’d never met. She almost wished she could see that boy again and tell him how much it meant to her.

She was having her own block of sorts with skating- that was part of why they moved to the United States. That, and, to try to escape from problems that well may follow her no matter how many continents away from them she is. 

Rayla pulled out her phone and tapped on the chat with her caretakers, her "uncles" and surrogate parents- Ethari and Runaan. There was already a bruise forming on her shoulder, and her hips were far from happy with her. She doubted Runaan would be either when he found out how far she’d pushed herself. She smiled at the spam of birthday messages from Ethari, then sent a message letting them know she was on her way to the studio and took a deep breath. It was _fine,_ she told herself. She'd keep practicing, she'd let Ethari help her. She’d be back in shape in no time. She had to be- she only had a couple of months. 

She honestly wasn’t sure why she still forced herself. She hadn’t gotten any real enjoyment out of skating in years. She had no will for it, no motivation or _meaning._ But for some reason, she just couldn’t stop. Or _wouldn’t,_ she supposed, maybe for the sake of Runaan and Ethari. They’d invested so much money and time in her. They had so much faith in her. They were _proud_ of her.

She’d be fine, she told herself, she’d keep practicing, keep learning, keep pushing. She’d make them proud. She’d make the energy they spent on her worthwhile.

It’ll be _fine,_ she thought.

She’d be _fine._


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Rayla and Callum go home to tell their families about each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates every other Sunday

Rayla entered the private skating area, a small building adjacent to the ballet studio Runaan owned, and leaned against the barrier separating the floor from the ice. Runaan had managed to transfer Moonshadow Dance & Skating from Scotland to the US a few weeks ago, and, not without a bit of luck, they were able to open for lessons as soon as they arrived. 

Runaan and Ethari were skating, just as they did almost every day. It was a short program they’d choreographed together years ago for practice, and whenever classes were over for the day and the rest of the staff had gone home, Rayla would always find them running through it in the rink. They had the same look in their eyes each time- the joy and exhilaration from skating, the loving gazes between them, the thoughts of years ago when they used to compete together.

Ethari noticed her first and paused in the middle of the step sequence. Despite the disruption, Runaan never fell out of rhythm and continued on his own. Ethari skated across to Rayla, waving. He took off his jacket and patted the beads of sweat off his forehead with it. 

“Hey! You stayed awhile, huh?” He leaned against the barrier from the other side.

"You really could've just practiced here," Runaan called from the ice, then pushed off into a near-flawless jump combination.

"Triple axel was fine, but you over-rotated the toe!" Rayla shouted.

"Did not!" he argued.

She smirked and looked back at Ethari.

"He's right you know," he said, "you wouldn'ta been in the way. Coulda kept you from falling on your ass too many times." He tapped her shoulder, the bruise already a fresh purple.

She rolled her eyes and rubbed it. They _always_ noticed, she should realize that by now. "It's not me I'm worried about gettin' in the way, it's yer ten-year-olds."

"Oh c'mon, the junior classes were _fine_ behaved."

"First day, give 'em time."

Ethari chuckled. “Have you eaten yet?”

“Yeah, grabbed some dinner on the way here,” she lied through her teeth.

Ethari nodded. "Runaan!" he called. "We're goin' ta lock up, love. Take care o' the ice, yeah?"

Ethari skated to the nearest opening and exited the ice, grabbing his guards from a bench on the other side of the barrier and slipping them onto his blades. Rayla fell into step with him and they entered the ballet studio. After he changed she helped him wipe down the barres and lock up the reception area, Ethari scolding her for her recklessness all the while. 

By seven o’clock, the three finally got into their cars- Rayla in hers and Runaan and Ethari in theirs- and headed for their new apartment. Rayla thought it was a lovely place, though living in the city couldn’t compare to Ethari and Runaan’s old cozy home. There were still boxes stacked all over the living room and foyer; they’d only just arrived the previous morning, and there was still much work to be done. They’d set up the dining room and kitchen, though, and that was enough for Ethari. After putting away their things and washing up, Rayla and Runaan sat down at the dining room table and Ethari went to the kitchen. He picked up two large trays from the counter, the tops covered with aluminum foil. Rayla sniffed the air. She face-palmed. 

“Ethari, don’t tell me you-”

“-Took his lunch break to prepare these?” Runaan said, “Yes, yes he did.”

“I said _don’t_ tell me.”

Ethari brought the trays to the table and uncovered them, revealing dozens of Rayla’s favorite treat- raspberry buns. She’d never been much for sweets like cake or ice cream, as Runaan and Ethari had learned the hard way when she was young. After every competition, Ethari would whip up a batch of the simple pastries for her, and she’d eat until she couldn’t feel her sore muscles. She figured it was a habit she should break, but it hadn’t caused her any problems yet, and she didn’t plan on stopping until it did. 

“Well, it’s your birthday,” Ethari said, sitting down next to Runaan. “Ya only turn twenty once, right? Figured I should pull out ol’ faithful.”

“You only turn _every_ age once, love.”

As the little family ate the buns straight from the trays, they told each other about their days, just as they did every night. Ethari told them about a particularly stubborn boy he'd had for a private lesson who refused to accept that he was pre-rotating every single one of his jumps. Runaan talked about dealing with parents who must have never signed their child up for something before. He said he'd had to argue with several of them about pricing even though it was _listed on the counter._

Runaan turned to Rayla. "What did you practice at the rink?"

"Jumps," she answered shortly, all of a sudden finding herself _very_ interested in Runaan's management troubles.

"And…?"

"Went okay I guess? My forms were fine enough but the rotations got messy."

Runaan and Ethari shared a glance, and Rayla shoved an entire bun in her mouth.

"Rayla…" Ethari started, "ya know it's okay to wait 'til next year, yeah? If ya aren't ready or...even if ya wanta be done. We can always-"

"No," Rayla shook her head, "I need to at least try. And if I put it off any longer I'll just run away from it again. Today I met this guy. And...I really think I'm ready to try again."

Runaan raised an eyebrow. "Oh, did you now?"

_Here we go._

"Is this like all the other 'I met a guy or girl' scenarios or…"

Rayla rolled her eyes. _"No,_ Runaan, I didn't even know 'im! He just…" she trailed off. "He showed me something. He drew me. Just...sketches, but it was _beautiful._ And he told me...that I helped him get out of a block. Er, my skating did. So, if he can break out of his, then… maybe I can too."

Runaan and Ethari exchanged another look, and they smiled softly.

"Well in that case-"

"Oh yeah!" Rayla interrupted. "He drew a costume on one of them. I wish I'd taken a picture of it. It wasn't anything fancy, but maybe we could build off it…?"

"Well, we're sitting down with your new designer in a couple weeks. I'm sure we can work something out," Runaan said. 

"Aren't we cutting it a bit close?"

"Eh," Ethari shrugged, "we've done worse."

"Not exactly an accomplishment," Runaan muttered.

"But for now," Ethari picked up a bun, "you'd better get eatin' before there're none left."

~

"You really wouldn't believe it, Aunt Amaya! She was _amazing_."

Ezran couldn't stop talking about the girl from the rink as he and Amaya did the dishes. Even when his aunt wasn't looking at him to read his lips, he kept going, well aware that she couldn't hear a word he was speaking. Callum sat at the kitchen table drawing (he had helped with the cooking, so he was officially excused from clean-up duty). 

"Whatch'ya working on?" a voice came from behind him. His father placed a hand atop the back of the chair. He was one of the few people Callum was comfortable with watching him draw, besides Ezran, his friend Claudia, and Amaya. 

"Hm? Oh, just touching up these sketches from earlier."

Harrow nodded, then his eyes were drawn to something on the right side of the page. He pointed to it. "This Ezran's skater?"

Callum looked at the sketch of the girl and chuckled. "Yeah, well, I'm sure you've already heard _all_ about it," he said gesturing towards Ezran with his head, continuing to draw.

Amaya turned to face them. "He's quite the fanboy, isn't he?" she signed, Callum translating what she said for his father and brother. Ezran looked up at her and bit the inside of his cheek.

"Can't really blame him though," Callum said, "she _was_ amazing. She did all these crazy spins and jumps. And even when she fell, she got up and just kept going. There were so many _shapes_ and _colors_ … I had to draw her. It's… hard to explain."

Harrow went around the table and sat down across from Callum, crossing one leg over the other. He plucked a grape from the fruit bowl in the middle of the table, which had yet to be put away for the night.

"Well your description's better than your brother's, at least. All I was getting before was, _'she was so cool and she went like this and this and this'."_ Harrow drew loops and circles in the air with his fingers. Though he was about to enter high school, Ezran was, in many ways, still a little kid.

After Gren returned from walking Bait (Ezran's little cavoodle dog), he and Amaya said goodbye to the family and went home to their apartment, which they split the rent of. Once everything from dinner was cleaned up, Harrow, Ezran, and Callum relaxed in the living room in front of the television, snacking on a bowl of cherries on the coffee table. 

Most nights looked similar to this, especially since the school year had ended and neither of the boys had any late night work to catch up on or tests to cram for. The only kind of work Callum had these days was building up his art portfolio to apply for school, and all Ezran had to worry about was convincing his father to sign him up for a different sort of lesson.

"So dad…"

"Hm?"

Ezran shifted closer to Harrow on the couch and nudged him with his elbow. "You know how I wanted to do skating lessons…"

"Mhm…"

"And you said not 'til the school year was over so that I could focus and not be stressed or whatever…"

"M _hm."_

 _"Well_ can I do it now? _Pleeease?"_

Harrow put down the book he was flipping through and took off his rectangular reading glasses, looking down at his youngest son. "How's this: if you can find a place that does lessons- private or group, whatever you prefer- and find out the costs, I'll see what I can do about signing you up. Deal?"

Ezran grinned. "Deal!" He hopped off the couch and ran down the hall to his room to start researching on his Chromebook. 

Harrow looked to where Callum was sitting on the loveseat, focused on his laptop screen.

"Still looking at D.F.A.A.?"

He was referring to Callum's dream school, Duren Fine Arts Academy. The boy had wanted to go there for most of his life, hardly sparing a glance at any other colleges. Harrow loved both of his sons dearly and wished for them whatever would make them most happy, whether that meant going to college or not, or whatever career they were interested in. He knew that Callum was infatuated with the idea of going to the same school as many artists he looked up to, but he also wanted his son to not be hasty. He wanted him to consider other options as well, as he may be surprised and fall in love with someplace else. He wanted Callum to be as happy with his life as he could be, with as few regrets as possible.

Callum looked up at him.

"Yeah," he answered, "just checking that their application requirements haven't been modified or anything."

"Again, Callum? Come on, you check every week! I promise Duren isn't going anywhere."

Callum shrugged. "You know, Clauds and Soren's mom started going there recently."

Harrow nodded, acknowledging the news about his former best friend Viren's ex-wife.

"You ever consider somewhere more local?" he asked.

"I guess it's worth looking at, I should probably apply to a few just in case, but I still wanna focus on Duren for the most part."

"Fair enough."

Harrow was happy with whatever his son wanted. But he also wanted to make sure he chose the best place for _himself,_ not for the school's reputation.

He wanted to make sure Callum didn't make the same mistakes he did.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezran still needs a place to take lessons, and Callum thinks he's found one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this one took so long, I updated it on Instagram but completely forgot to post it here, but here you go! Hope you enjoy. Not my favorite, but it gets the point across

“Imagine having a _job,”_ Soren groaned into his cinnamon roll. He took a massive bite as Callum poured more coffee into his friend's mug.

"You should apply here Soren," Claudia, who was seated across the table said, "at least then you'd have something to _do_." She took a sip of her tea and turned the page of the book she was reading.

"And work early like this guy? I'll pass."

"I mean, if anything, you'd have some cash to spend on, like, weights, or whatever it is you do at home all day."

Callum chuckled. He'd known Claudia and Soren almost his whole life, as his father and theirs were good friends when they were younger. They'd had a falling out in college, but Callum and the siblings remained close.

Most mornings, Claudia dragged her brother to the bakery for breakfast if she had time before classes, though Soren was never very happy to wake up as early as that entailed ("It's _nine o'clock,_ Soren, you'll live," she would tell him). 

A door swung open into the area behind the counter, and Ezran entered, yawning and rubbing his eye. The door led into a small foyer in which there was a staircase up to the family's apartment. 

Ezran made straight for where his brother and their friends were and sat down next to Soren. He ripped off a piece of the second cinnamon roll that was on his plate and popped it in his mouth.

 _"Wow,"_ Soren said, the impact of this betrayal clear in his eyes.

"About time you woke up." Callum slapped Ezran's hand away from Soren's plate. "How's the search going? It's been a week, any luck yet?"

Ezran blew out his cheeks. "Still the same. Way too expensive or way too far to walk to."

"I could always ride the bus with you."

Ezran shrugged and stood. "I'm gonna go grab Bait and head over to Aanya's. Want anything?"

Callum hummed in thought for a moment, then started, "Cin-"

"-Cinnamon sugar doughnut?" Ezran cut him off. "Saw that one coming." Ezran left the way he came from, fist-bumping Claudia as he passed by her. He didn't come back, so Callum assumed he'd gone out the back door (probably wise, if he had his grumpy little dog in tow).

"You know her moms make more than one kind of doughnut, right?" Claudia said to Callum, not looking up from her book. He turned to her.

"I mean, yeah, but why stray from perfection? There's a reason they have so much money from just a baking chain, y'know."

Holding stocks in several multi-million dollar companies didn't exactly hurt them, either.

Claudia shrugged and sipped her tea. 

Callum felt a buzz in his pocket and pulled out his phone. More likes on his tweet, he saw. He knew he hadn't posted any art in a while, but he hadn't expected his sketches from over a week ago to still be gaining this much attention. His thoughts went to the skater he met, not for the first (or last) time. He still cringed a littleat his own awkwardness. He must’ve seemed like such a creep, walking up to her and shoving a sketchbook in her face. He had realized that day that _hey look I drew you_ probably sounded a _bit_ strange, and he’d wanted to rip his own hair out from the scalp. Everything he told her was true, though, so he’d decided to tweet the sketches.

The sound of a bell twinkled, the tell-tale sign of a new customer entering the shop. Callum tucked his phone away and started collecting the empty dishes from his friends’ table. He started to step away, but Claudia’s voice stopped him.

“You know, Soren’s not wrong.” She put her book down on the table.

Callum looked at her. “About asserting your dominance by wearing socks in the shower?”

“Wh- _no._ You _work_ too much. And you’ve barely even drawn for, like, months. Didn’t you wanna get into that school?”

Callum sighed. “I _do,_ but I also wanna take my time with it, you know? I wanna make sure I do it right.”

Someone brushed behind him on the way to their table, and he gave a quiet _“excuse me”_ and scooted out of the way. 

“I’m gonna go grab that order,” Callum said, stacking the last plate. “Hurry up and get to class, Clauds, you’ve got an hour.”

“Mhm,” she hummed, picking her book back up.

He made a mental note to start giving Claudia smaller cups of tea.

**~**

Rayla rolled her shoulder back as she walked down the sidewalk. She’d had a nasty fall the previous night, and her aching joints were making themselves well known.

After she pulled into the studio parking lot, she finally listened to her groaning body (for once) and decided to go for a walk in the city, rather than getting right into practice. She’d already lived there a week, but the only places she had been so far were home, the public rink, and the studio. She figured it would be a good idea to familiarize herself with where she lived, maybe grab some breakfast. 

It was exactly like everything she had heard about US cities. Even this early in the morning, cars were congested together on the narrow streets, and pedestrians scurried across the streets and along sidewalks, bustling to get to work, school, or wherever it was they were trying to go. She enjoyed the atmosphere, though, it gave her a sense of purpose. Sleek buildings climbed high into the sky, and round pigeons hopped along the edge of the road. Boston was no Edinburgh, but the historical value of the city combined with modern architecture was enough to keep her interested. 

She liked to imagine she knew the minds of strangers she saw on the streets. That man with the loose necktie and scuffed shoe was late for a very important interview. That person with a cross face pushing a stroller was stressed out about their bills, but wanted to do the best they could to make life fun for their kids. That woman with the nice perm was waiting to get on the bus to a brunch date with her girlfriend. Coming up with stories for strangers helped her feel more connected to where she was, and gave her a sense of control over some aspect of life. If she couldn’t control the things in her own life- her schedule, her body, her confidence- she figured she should at least pretend to have control over _something._ Rayla’s life was chaotic, but when she reminded herself that maybe others’ were too, she didn’t feel quite as small.

She turned a corner onto a less busy (though not quiet by any means) street, and a building caught her eye. The sturdy brick structure stood out between the gray stone and shiny metal shops and structures. It was a rather compact two-story building. Two long windows stretched on either side of the door. A sign extended from the building, hanging from a skinny metal rod. It read “Katolis Bakery”, spelled out over the symbol of two uneven castle towers. Rayla peered inside one of the windows. The inside of the bakery was just as quaint as the outside- little round tables, a corner containing a bookshelf and bean bag chairs. A man stood behind the counter, which connected to a large glass case lined with treats and pastries. There were very few customers, and in her peripheral vision she saw a waiter casually chatting with two people seated at one of the tables. It seemed a fine enough place to get something to eat, and she entered the bakery.

A little bell rang as the door swung inward, and the tall man behind the counter smiled and welcomed her. She ordered a croissant and a coffee, and after saying she was sitting in, rather than getting it to-go, the man told her she could find a seat wherever she liked and her order would be brought out to her in a moment. 

She turned and looked around the bakery for a place to sit, and spotted a small table in the back near the book corner. She brushed by a waiter as she went, the one she saw through the window. His voice sounded familiar as he muttered his apology, but she couldn't place it, and passed it off as a moment of deja vu.

Rayla took her seat facing away from the front of the shop and tugged out the elastic that was holding her hair in a ponytail, letting the bleached-blonde strands of hair fall at her shoulders. She gazed out the window on her right at the people on the sidewalk passing under the overcast sky. 

“Callum!” she heard the man at the front call.

 _Callum._ It was a nice name, she thought.

She heard the waiter from before call back _coming,_ then footsteps on the wooden floor as he crossed to the counter. 

~

Callum hurried away from his friends (without a tip, R.I.P.) and up to the counter to grab the newest customer’s order. Claudia and Soren passed by him, waving goodbye on their way out the door. His father handed him a steaming coffee and a warm croissant.

“The young lady in the back, by the library,” Harrow told Callum when he asked where it was going.

As Callum approached the back of the shop, he spotted the light hair of who he was looking for. She looked strangely familiar, even from the back, though he had no idea why. If he was honest, he didn’t really have many friends outside Claudia and Soren, and he was close with Ezran’s best friend Aanya. He had no clue why he would recognize some random customer. Maybe she had come in before? He wasn’t sure.

She was on her phone when he got to the table, so he didn’t look up at her face, wanting to avoid being awkward as much as he possibly could (he had a habit of making very awkward, silent eye contact with customers whilst gathering his thoughts). He set the plate and coffee down in front of her. “Excuse me?”

The girl shut off her phone screen.

“Is there anything else I can-”

He stopped short when her eyes met his. Rayla froze.

_Scarf guy?_

“You-”

“-I remember you! From the rink!”

Rayla cleared her throat. She blinked, just now realizing she hadn’t yet.

“Er...yeah. With the sketches, right?”

He nodded, his eyes lighting up as if he were gazing at the best thing he’d ever seen. _Maybe he was,_ she let herself think. 

“Callum, was it?”

He nodded again, then shifted back and forth for a moment, looking like he was trying to collect himself. He gestured towards the empty seat across from her. “C-Can I-”

She nodded at the chair. An invitation.

Callum sat down and folded his hands together on top of the table. He didn’t know why he was so excited to see her again. Maybe it was that he’d previously thought he _wouldn’t_ see her again. After the impact she had on him, he couldn’t help but wish he would get to.

“So…” he said, “can I ask your name?”

“Rayla,” she answered simply, seeming unperturbed by the extroverted behavior he was displaying.

Rayla let out a proverbial breath. He didn’t know her name. He _wasn’t_ another obsessive fanboy trying to shmooze her up.

“Listen, about last week, at the rink,” Callum continued, “Sorry I like, _ah,_ I don’t know, jumped at you, I guess? I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable or anything.”

He _definitely_ wasn’t some fanboy.

“Hm? Oh, no, don’t even worry about it. Was a hell of a lot better than what I usually get.”

“Seriously? I thought you’d always be, like, showered with praise or something.”

She leaned her head against her hand and stirred her coffee. “Not the kind ya’d think. Ya know,” she pulled out the stir-straw and waggled it, pointing at him. “I got followed home from the practice studio once, back in Edinburgh. Damn guy didn’t know how to take a hint.” She took a sip of her drink.

They sat quietly for a moment, then Callum asked, "So, how come you moved here? If that's okay to ask."

"No, yer fine." Rayla had no idea why she was speaking so comfortably around this boy. She met him once, hardly for a moment. There was just something in the air around him. It was comforting. Secure. "It's...kinda a long story, but I guess the abridged version is that I needed a new home base for skating. A new space for thought I guess?" She shrugged.

Callum thought for a moment. "So, kinda like drawing? Or...school work. Sometimes, just sitting at your desk in your room, you don't have any motivation or energy, but if you move locations, move your thought space, to somewhere like, say, a porch, maybe your brain has space to breathe. Something like that?"

Rayla blinked at him. She always thought herself to be as far from an artist as a person could get. But Callum _understood._ By putting it into a scenario that he was familiar with, he understood _exactly_ what she was thinking.

"Uh...yeah. Yeah, somethin' like that."

There was another moment of silence.

"So," Rayla said, "ya work here?"

Callum shrugged. "Sometimes. My dad's the owner, so I get pretty flexible hours. Pay's not so good though." He gestured to the man behind the counter who had taken her order. 

"Gives somethin' to kill the time, yeah? My family owns a business too. Probably gets a whole lot less foot traffic than yer dad's place though."

_Why was she telling him all this?_

"Something with skating?"

_Smart._

"Yeah, me uncles own a dance and skatin' studio, just up Xadia Street. It's pretty small, but it's been growin' by the day since we got here. Guess once winter sports fanatics heard it was their place, everyone and their dog wanted to sign up for lessons."

"Oh, what are their names? Maybe I've heard of them."

Rayla beamed, much to her own surprise. She wasn't normally one to talk much about herself, but an honest chance to brag about her uncles? There was no way she was passing that up.

"Runaan and Ethari Moon."

Callum hummed. "Sounds familiar."

"They should, " Rayla nodded, “twenty years ago they broke the record for highest score in an international pair skating program." _Among other things,_ she kept to herself.

Callum's face lit up. "That's incredible! No wonder you're so good. I wonder…" he trailed off.

"What's that?"

"Oh, nothing. My brother's been looking for a place to get signed up for skating lessons. Just wondering if he'd checked out your place yet. It's pretty close by...maybe it's a feasible option."

"I'd say the rates for private lessons are pretty low compared to others in the area, if that's ever a factor," Rayla said, "Runaan has been wanting me to start helpin' out with some beginner level lessons a couple times a week. Maybe I could see what I can do to fit him in?"

"That'd be awesome!" Callum grinned. "I'll definitely talk to our dad and him about it once he gets home."

"Great! Uh, do you wanna contact the studio directly about it?" She hesitated to give her next suggestion. Crossing lines was how you got people to avoid you, after all, and something told her she'd regret if that happened with Callum, even if she hardly knew him. She continued. "Or, I could just...send you any info myself?"

"Hm, the second one, probably, just through you, since we'll end up having a bunch of questions anyway, knowing us."

"Oh, yeah, cool. So uh…"

Callum pulled out his phone and opened up his contact list, hitting _add new._ He passed it to her, and her thumbs hovered over the keyboard for a moment before she entered her number. She gave it back, and he typed something. A moment later Rayla's phone buzzed on top of the table, lighting up with a message from an unsaved contact, just a smiley face. She smiled and saved Callum's number. 

The bell at the front of the shop sounded, and Callum peered around Rayla at the customer who just entered.

"Guess I gotta get back to work," he said. He stood and pushed in his chair, sliding his phone into his pocket. "Let me know if you need anything else, and uh, see you soon, hopefully?"

Rayla smiled and nodded once, and Callum left, his footsteps tapping back up to the front counter.

Rayla looked out the window beside her. There were a few less people hurrying along the sidewalk now, and the street seemed more peaceful. The buildings looked lighter, the people more content.

At some point during their conversation, the cloudy sky had finally given way to sun.

  
  
  
  



	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezran meets his skating instructor, and Callum and Rayla learn about one another.
> 
> Also Skor just kinda be existing

Ezran stepped out of the crowded city bus, Callum following closely behind. Ezran pulled the sleeves of the sweater wrapped around his waist tight, and the brothers began their short walk towards Moonshadow Dance & Skating. 

Rayla was right, it definitely wasn’t far from their bakery, just a ten minute bus ride, then two blocks down the street and a turn. Callum made a mental note of that.

The city was quieter at this time in the afternoon. Not needing to worry about bumping into people or stepping on too many pigeons, he was able to observe his surroundings. He took in the colors of the awnings on shops, how they changed and blended together as his angle shifted. He watched how the sunlight laid across the city like a sheet, allowing him to see the sparkling minerals embedded in the cement and the light freckles scattered across Ezran’s face. The world was a work of art, one that Callum appreciated every time he stepped outside.

After a brief walk (and a close call with a pigeon), they arrived at a short building on a more open street, with less structures crowded next to one another. The building was very sleek, with large glass panels on the front. It was certainly a nice place, and Callum was sure the contrast to the old stone and brick buildings around would draw eyes. Ezran smiled up at him, and the boys entered the studio.

They stepped into a small lobby area, with chairs lined against the door-side wall and a counter with a computer, register, and laminated graphics on top of it. Behind the counter stood a broad-shouldered man with platinum hair just like Rayla’s, though his was tied in a long ponytail down to his waist. Callum would’ve  _ loved  _ to draw this man skating. 

The man looked up and waved them over to the counter. Callum thought he looked quite bored. The brothers approached the counter, and the man asked for a name, lesson time, and instructor, or if they were looking to schedule a time. Ezran told him he had the 3 p.m. lesson, though he wasn’t sure who the instructor was. 

“Ah, you’ll be with Ethari then?”

Callum watched Ezran’s face light up brighter than the sun, and he tried to recall where he’d heard the name before. He remembered Rayla mentioning it, something about an international competitor? He wondered if this man in front of them was the other skater Rayla had talked about, Runaan.

Callum heard the door to the building open as Potentially-Runaan typed something into the computer on the counter. 

“It says here you paid online, is that correct?”

Callum opened his mouth to answer, when he was cut off by a girl behind him.

“Working the front  _ again _ , Runaan? Where’s-”

Callum turned around at the familiar sound of her voice, and she stopped mid-sentence.

"-Oh. Hey,” Rayla said.

“Hey!” Callum smiled, Ezran waving next to him.

“You know this lot, Rayla?” Apparently-Runaan asked.

Rayla nodded. “The ones from the rink, remember?”

Ezran turned back to Runaan. “Rayla’s the one that helped us find this place.”

Runaan let out what Callum assumed was a small laugh, though was more of a  _ hm  _ noise. He leaned his face against his hand, elbow propped on the counter, and he smirked at Rayla.

“Crawling out of your cave, are you?”

“Oh, like you’re any better, mister I-Read-During-Pre-Series-Parties.”

“C’mon now, Rayla, you know he can’t help being a hobbit.”

Another man spoke as a door on the wall adjacent to the counter swung open. Callum was not the least bit surprised to see yet another tall, muscular, light haired man step through.

Rayla rolled her eyes. “You’re gonna encourage this, ‘Thari?”

“Always,” he smirked, then turned his attention to the boys. "One of you lads is Ezran, yeah?" he asked with an accent much thicker than Rayla and Runaan's. "Saw ya got checked in."

Ezran nodded and passed the backpack he carried to Callum. Ethari beckoned him over and held the door open for him as he passed through. Rayla started forward, but Ethari stopped her.

"Nah, we'll just be lookin' at some fundamentals fer now, I'll ask ya to help later when we get movin' a little more. Get thinkin' on some design ideas, would ya?"

Ethari winked at Callum, pressed a quick kiss to Runaan's cheek, and disappeared after Ezran, closing the door behind himself. 

Once they left, Runaan turned back to the computer in front of him and Callum took a seat in one of the chairs, setting the backpack in the one next to him and pulling out a familiar sketchbook.

"Just gonna wait here?" Rayla asked, not getting why he would want to just sit in a plain lobby with her taciturn uncle for the next two hours.

Callum shrugged and pulled out a pencil, flipping open the sketchbook. "Don't really have anything better to do. I'm fine to just wait."

Rayla thought he did look rather content as he dragged the pencil across the paper, likely creating some masterpiece that he would downplay as "just a sketch", though she knew it was always more than that.

She let out a bored sigh. “Is storage unlocked, Runaan?”

He nodded once, not looking away from the computer.

"Guess I can go organize the rental equipment," Rayla rolled her eyes and trudged towards the door. "See ya, Callum."

~

“Organizing the rental equipment” didn’t prove to be  _ nearly  _ as entertaining as Rayla hoped, and she soon found herself wandering aimlessly around the halls of the studio.

She sighed. She didn't want to bother Callum; he'd seemed so focused on whatever he was drawing, but he would definitely be more interesting than anything she was doing right now. She could practice, but the public rink was closed for some local hockey game and she didn't want to disturb the lessons in Moonshadow's rink.

She played tug-of-war with herself for a moment, before finally deciding to go back and talk to Callum. He was the one to approach her both other times they met, so she figured (hoped) it would be fine for her to do the same.

When she entered the lobby, she saw Runaan had been replaced by another employee, Skor, at the counter. She turned her gaze to Callum, still in the same chair and focusing hard on the sketchbook in front of him. Still, after noticing Rayla, he looked up from his paper and smiled at her. Rayla paused for a fraction of a second- his smile was so  _ warm.  _ She'd felt it when he smiled at her and showed her his sketches at the rink, and again when they met at the bakery. His face was so welcoming and kind. It felt...well, she wasn't sure. "Safe" was the first word that came to mind.

Rayla approached him, and before she could open her mouth, Callum moved his bag from the seat next to him and onto the floor, clearing a space for her to sit. She took it as an invitation and seated herself next to the boy. 

"Run out of equipment to stare at to look like you're keeping yourself busy when really you're just being crushed by the weight of your own boredom?"

She rolled her eyes. "There's only so much to keep me entertained around here."

Callum turned back to his sketch paper, and Rayla averted her eyes, having known many artists who hated when people watched them draw. 

"I'd imagine skating as well as you do would hold you over for at least a bit."

Rayla shrugged.

"Still," he continued, "I guess for you it's probably as normal as folding your laundry or something, right?"

Rayla nodded once, knowing no emphasis was needed. Based on the way he effortlessly guided his pencil as he held a conversation, she figured he knew the feeling. Get good enough at something and it can start feeling like a chore.

Rayla spared a glance towards his sketchbook, her curiosity getting the better of her. Callum caught her eye, and he gave a small smile. He angled the sketchbook on his knee so she could see better and continued to draw, seemingly unbothered.

She watched him for a while as he drew different people and animals and landscapes. 

"Who's that little guy?" she asked at one point, gesturing to the grumpy looking, spotted cocker spaniel in the upper corner of the page.

Callum chuckled under his breath. "My brother's old dog Bait. Ez practically grew up with him. Used to carry him everywhere when he was little." 

Rayla could hear the smile in his voice as he touched up a spot of shading on Bait's fur. Her eyes travelled down the page and landed on a portrait he seemed to have put extra effort into.

"How about this one?" She pointed to the sketch of the woman.

Callum lifted his pencil and looked where she was pointing. He smiled again, though his eyes looked glazed. Wistful.

"My mom," he answered shortly.

_ Oh. _

"She's beautiful."

Callum sighed and gazed at the picture of his mother. "Yeah."

The two sat in a comfortable quiet, just the sound of Callum's pencil on the sketch paper and Skor typing away on the computer filling the space. After what felt like forever, though she was sure it was only a few minutes, Rayla's gaze began to linger on one drawing in particular. It was a grove, surrounded by trees and filled with tall grass and rocks and a stream. Even through just the shading of Callum's pencil, it looked so  _ real.  _ It reminded her of the grove back home, one she always played in with Runaan and Ethari. She hummed fondly at the memory. 

"It's gotta take a hell of a lot of practice to get this good, huh," she commented, taking in the details of the sketch.

"Speaking of practicing…"

Rayla and Callum both looked up at the counter, where the voice came from. Skor spoke with a heavy accent, much like Ethari's.

Rayla rolled her eyes. "Ethari hasn't even given me my free skate routine yet, what am I  _ supposed  _ to practice?"

Skor looked up from the computer and brushed a strand of his long hair out of his face. "Last I saw, he an' Runaan were working on the last portion of yer short program. Be patient and go practice step sequences or somethin'."

"You're around them too much, ya know that?" Rayla shot back, "Runaan's starting to rub off on ya."

Skor shrugged and returned to what he was doing on the computer.

Rayla huffed, then turned to Callum. 

"There a park or somethin' around here? One with some cement?"

Callum thought for a moment. "Uhh, yeah, the Common should be just a few-  _ woah!" _

Next thing he knew, Rayla’s hand was around his wrist and he was tugged out of his chair and through the front door, sketchbook still in hand. She brought him around the side of the building and to a parking lot, and at some point he realized he was in the passenger seat of a small silver car, Rayla pulling up her navigation app.

"I could just tell you where it is, you know."

Rayla shrugged. "Gotta find my way around eventually, right?"

A short drive later, Rayla found a parking spot at the side of the road and pulled out a duffel bag from the floor of the back seat. Callum directed her for the rest of the walk to the park.

Rayla felt her face heating up as they walked.  _ Why  _ did she bring him with her?! What if he didn’t want to come? Wasn’t he waiting for his brother? What if he thought she was rude? She barely even knew this guy! What if he got annoyed with her? What if-

“Hey,” Callum’s voice interrupted her internal ramble. He tapped on her shoulder and pointed. There’s an empty spot over there, if that’s what you’re looking for.”

“Hm?” Rayla snapped out of her thoughts, grateful he didn’t catch onto what she was thinking. “Oh, yeah.”

The two walked along the cement path and to a bench, where Rayla set down her bag and pulled out a pair of sky-blue roller blades. Callum figured it made sense. Roller blading and dance seemed to translate nicely into figure skating. If you didn’t have access to open ice, a flat concrete surface was the next best option.

Rayla walked with impressive (though not surprising) balance to the cement strip the pench was perched on the edge of. She closed her eyes and took a breath, positioning her feet. Callum sat down on the bench, sketchbook at the ready. She looked just like she had at the rink- serene and ethereal, an air of grace and beauty surrounding her. He picked up his pencil as she rose her arms and began to glide across the sidewalk. The pavement turned into air under her feet, the skates like knives being run through the space. 

Callum pressed the pencil to his page, studying the position and movements of Rayla's body as she sailed across the path. Something stopped him from drawing, though. Something felt off. Felt...grey.

He could tell she loved what she was doing. He  _ really  _ could. When he looked at her face, he saw peace. But he also saw sadness. Regret. There was a certain melancholy to it that made the swirling colors he'd seen the first time he watched her skate seem monochromatic. 

After about ten minutes, Rayla moved the duffel bag to the ground and took a seat next to Callum. She pulled out a towel, with which she wiped the sweat off her forehead and two water bottles. She offered Callum one, to which he shook his head and she placed it back in the bag.

"I'll bet that never gets old, huh? If I was that good at something like that, I'd probably never be sick of it."

"Eh, ya wouldn't know it," Rayla replied, ignoring the implication that he didn't possess ungodly amounts of artistic talent. 

"Whatd'ya mean?"

Rayla shrugged. "It's hard to explain... In skating, the meaning behind it comes from the effect you have on others, and it helps you...I don't know, grow, express yourself as a person. But at a certain point, they stop bein' surprised at what you do. They stop feeling the impact of the everything you pour into the performance. And after a while, so do you. You kinda lose the motivation, the thrill. It loses all the meaning that made it so important in the first place, ya know?"

Callum looked down at his blank paper. "Yeah, I get that."

Rayla knew she understood. Still, she asked, "How's that?"

"I've been trying to gather my portfolio for this private fine arts school I wanna go to. But…"

"When you try to draw, there's nothing?"

"Yeah," he confirmed, "it's like, when I put my pencil on the paper, it's not  _ art, _ right? Just lines."

Rayla nodded, thoughtful. 

"God, I sound like one of those old white philosopher guys, huh?"

Rayla laughed- a genuine laugh, something she didn't do often.

"And then there's my stepdad," Callum continued. "He supports me, I know he does. Completely. But he keeps telling me I should consider other places too, or maybe  _ instead.  _ I don't know if it's that he doesn't want me too far from home, or he just doesn't think it's the right fit? I don't know. He's just looking out for me, but it kinda makes me question myself a little bit, y'know?"

Rayla gave another nod, inviting him to continue. 

"I think it's mostly the first one. After what happened to my mom though, I don't really blame him all that much for being worried."

"....can I ask what you mean?"

Rayla had no idea why she was crossing this boundary with someone she  _ barely knew.  _ Callum just felt so comfortable and familiar. 

But her mouth had moved faster than her brain again. He was going to get uncomfortable. He was going to be angry. He was going to leave. He was going to-

"She was overseas for work," Callum explained, "I don't remember where or what her job even was, I was only five. But I do remember that she came home way earlier than she was supposed to, and I was happy. But then I didn't get to see her. I figured out she was staying at the hospital, but I had no idea why."

Albeit hesitantly, Rayla placed a hand on his shoulder. She understood just what it was like to lose a family member.

"Later I found out that she needed a lung transplant. Some kind of fibrosis? I dunno, my dad never told me about it. I didn't even know she was sick, at the time. Apparently she ended up falling into a real bad state while she was away and needed to be given a leave. She got the surgery, but her body rejected the lung they gave her and...they couldn't save her."

"Callum…"

"My dad sorta internalized it after that, and he got real careful about where Ez and I got off to. I guess it makes sense. My mom's condition got bad when she was far away, and he couldn't be there for her. Any time we're away from him he gets all anxious."

Rayla nodded. "I'll bet it's been hard for him. And for you and Ezran too. You were so  _ young.  _ And...Ezran, to have to grow up without his mother…"

"Yeah…"

The pair sat in silence for a moment, then Callum shook his head.

"But, we're doing okay! I mean, it took awhile for things to feel normal. I'm sure for my stepdad they probably  _ still  _ don't. But I have all the things she taught me. We always celebrate her birthday, and all the time, Ez asks us all about her, even if it's stuff he already knew. We all kinda changed after that, I think." He paused for a moment, rethinking, then, "well, Ez was like, not even one, so I guess there wasn't much to change for him."

Rayla chuckled and bumped her shoulder against his. "Well, the two of ya seem to 'ave turned out pretty okay, either way."

"Don't tell Ezran that, it'll go straight to his head."

"Ah, c'mon, he's a nice kid."

" _ Heh.  _ Yeah. Sometimes  _ too  _ nice."

"Well  _ that's  _ never good."

They sat together for another minute, enjoying this moment they shared. 

It was funny. Rayla never thought anyone could ever allow themselves to seem vulnerable around her, much less someone she’s only met twice. She almost let herself think she’d found someone steady, a friend who’s a rock she could anchor herself on. But she stopped herself. 

_ Don’t let them get too close. They don’t  _ want  _ to get too close. _

"So how about you?” Callum asked. “Your family, I mean. I know you've got Runaan and Ethari, right? Is there anyone else?- if you don't mind me asking."

This, she could certainly not work with. If he knew she wasn't good enough for her own parents, then maybe she'd stop being good enough for him, too.

Her voice went flat. "I don't wanna talk about it."

“Oh. Sorry for asking.”

Rayla shrugged. 

Callum hesitated before speaking again, not wanting to wear out his welcome. "How about that man that was at the counter when we left? You seemed pretty familiar, right?"

She seemed more open to talk about this one. “One of my uncles' best friends, Skor. I've known him since I was little. He and their other buddies, Andromeda, Ram, and Callisto, all moved here together a few years ago. Runaan and Ethari decided to stay in Edinburgh so they could help me keep some consistency in my life. With all the travelling during competition seasons, they thought it’d be best for me to have a constant, familiar home base.”

“How come you moved?”

“I-”

Rayla was cut off by the loud sound of several bicycle bells, followed by a splash of water as a group of kids rode through puddles on the path. She let out a small squeak as she got sprayed, clutching Callum’s shoulder and turning her head away, almost hiding behind him. 

After the bikes passed, Callum looked down at her cowering figure and held in a laugh. Rayla pulled her hands away from his shoulder and placed them in her lap, recomposing herself as her cheeks turned a scarlet hue. 

“What, afraid of a little splish-splash?”

Rayla knocked her fist against his shoulder and started untying her skates.

“We should probably head back, don’t want to still be away when Ezran gets out.

Callum nodded and closed his sketchbook, sneaking peeks at Rayla’s flustered face as she packed her things. He had to admit to himself, it was cute. 

On the drive back to the studio, Callum couldn’t help the thought creeping into his mind. 

He was glad this wasn’t the last time he’d see her. Not by a long shot.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tag urself im Potentially-Runaan


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She has a friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter's shorter than usual (and they're already pretty short) but I hope you enjoy regardless!
> 
> Also! Some of you in the comments of the last chapter noticed the inconsistent page break with the changes in point of view. I appreciated those comments and they pointed something out to me I hadn't even noticed, so thanks! We're all still learning.  
> The POV of this book is a third-person omniscient narrator, so any time any character's thoughts are relevant, they'll just be written into the text. I'll do my best not to scatter things all over the place so it doesn't get confusing :). The page breaks (Like this: ~) are mostly used for a change of location or time.  
> That's just to clear some things up that may have been confusing, sorry about that. I hope you enjoy the chapter :)

"Over-rotated, try again!"

Rayla let out a loud groan from her spot in the middle of the ice. Runaan chuckled at her displeasure with him. She began building back momentum to attempt the double axel once again. This time, her foot got out from under her on the landing, but she managed to stay upright.

“Still sloppy. Go back to the beginning of the step sequence.”

Rayla gave another drawn-out grumble. "All the way to the first half?"

Runaan nodded, and Rayla rolled her eyes and began skating from the top of the routine.

He watched her for a good while, observing not only her technical mechanics and form, but also how she carried out the routine. It didn’t take Runaan long to realize what was bothering him- Rayla wasn’t skating because she wanted to; she wasn’t even enjoying it. She left nothing to be interpreted, no emotion to be registered. She was simply completing the steps, not performing them. 

Runaan heard the door behind him open and close, then Ethari was at his side, leaning on the barrier.

"Saw you added in some consecutive waltzes for the choreo sequence," Runaan commented as they watched.

"Yeah, interpretive boost in the choreography, she's always been good with 'em."

Runaan’s brow furrowed in thought. “She definitely needs it. I’m not too sure it’ll be enough, though.”

Ethari placed a hand on his husband’s arm. “What’s on yer mind, love?”

Runaan sighed. “Rayla,” he called. She slowed to a stop. “That’ll be alright for now, we can work on the spin combination later.”

He saw her shoulders relax with relief, and she skated to the far entrance and hobbled through the locker room door. Once she was gone, Runaan turned around and leaned back on the barrier, resting his elbows on the rail.

“You saw her, Ethari. She isn’t in this. She’s just… going through the motions.”

Ethari hummed in thought. “Well, I’m sure the move wasn’t easy on ‘er. She’s probably stressed.”

Runaan shook his head. “We moved _because_ of this. We’ve been here a few weeks and she’s already made a friend. She seems in a much better headspace than she ever was in Edinburgh. That’s not the problem. She’s unfocused, unmotivated, un _confident.”_

Ethari nodded. “She's had a pretty rough time, y’know. With what happened last year, and… Tiadrin and Lain.”

A solemn look crossed Runaan’s face at the mention of Rayla’s parents. “What’s it going to _take,_ Ethari? She needs to push herself, go beyond, but I don’t want a repeat of last year. I can’t watch that.”

Neither of the men wished to watch Rayla put herself back through the suffering she had in the previous year. Ethari had seen what it did to Runaan. For the sake of both people he loved, he wholeheartedly agreed with his husband. 

They were quiet for a moment, before Runaan broke it.

"I want to make the double axel a triple."

Ethari retracted his previous agreement.

“...wait, what?”

“I want her to try it as a triple.”

“She already has the required components, I don't think-”

"You watched her, didn't you? Her interpretive score is going to drag the whole thing down. You said yourself it needed some help. And if she doesn't pull those transitions together…”

“You want to boost her technical to make up for it?

“Something like that.”

“You know how much of a risk that is, though. The amount of women that have landed that in international competition-”

“-Eleven. I know. But Rayla is much more skilled than either of us were at her age. I believe she can do it.”

Ethari sighed. "And what if she can't? Won't that just lead her to spiral again?"

Runaan shook his head. "I've thought about that. If she is able and willing, she will push herself to success. Keeping that goal in sight may help spur her, maybe help her find what she's missing."

"Well, you know her best," Ethari resigned, "I'll trust your judgment. But if-"

"-If it happens again, we'll pull it from the program. I promise."

Ethari nodded. "I'll go change it in the outline and let her know." He placed a kiss on his husband's cheek as he turned away. 

"Tell her we'll leave for the designer in ten, can you? I'll let Andromeda know we're headed out."

Ethari waved over his shoulder and exited the rink, the door of the small building swinging shut behind him. 

~

Rayla leaned her forehead against the car window and watched the city blur by. In the front seats, Runaan and Ethari were discussing some skating event in Scotland they'd watched on TV the previous night. 

That seemed to be all they ever talked about, Rayla noticed. Granted, they owned a skate coaching business. And, granted, they themselves had been international competitors, once upon a time. But most nights, she would come home and hardly hear anything except _"skating, skating, skating."_ She would have figured her guardians had milked the subject dry at this point. Did they not have anything else in their lives relevant enough to bring up in conversation? Rayla grew tired of it.

She truly loved skating, that was a fact of which she was well aware, but it seemed to consume her every waking moment. Sometimes in her dreams as well. As a child, she didn't go out with friends often (she did have a few, if she remembered correctly). Over time, she began to throw herself deeper into her craft and ended up growing distant from them (most of them anyway, though her old playmate and training partner Nyx had become more of a rival than anything.) She was never very good at school, so she decided to fully dedicate herself to the world of skating instead. Even in primary school, she spent most class time reading library books about scoring systems, competition history, jump physics. Now that she thought about it, she could've made it big in history and physics if she'd ever actually given two shits about her grades. 

As a result, she became even more isolated from her peers through her school years. She never considered any other careers because she never really gave herself a chance to. The only thing on her mind through school- through her entire life- was skating. She left school as soon as she was able- right when she turned sixteen- and allowed skating to consume every aspect of her life. 

Rayla adored skating and it would always be a part of her, but she couldn’t help feeling like she’d missed out on a lot of things in life because of it. College, career options, friendship, off-days, romance…

Her phone buzzed in her lap, the screen lighting up with a text notification. She lifted it and, for reasons far beyond her, smiled when she saw Callum’s contact name.

  
  


_ >Hey! Just left the rink (yes I fell shut up), _ _  
__Ez was looking pretty good :0_

_ >he’s literally had one lesson so far _

_ >and you shouldve taken a video in _ _  
__case I need blackmail of you later :(_

_ >One, rude. Two, that just means you _ _  
__gave us a good rec for where to go_

_ >pfft, whatever you say _

He didn’t text back for a moment, and Rayla thought he would leave it at that. Part of her was almost relieved, because she had no idea how to talk to people and didn’t want to make a fool of herself. Though another part of her wanted Callum to spam her phone with messages and keep her mind off things.

Her phone vibrated again a moment later.

_ >So what’s up? _

_ >on my way to my designer to talk _

_about concepts for this season_

_ >Concepts for? _

_ >oh pff im a dumbass. costumes for competing. _ _  
__different one for each of the two programs_

_ >Nah, I shoulda figured. When’s the _ _  
__competition?_

_ >starts in october, but its a whole series through _ _  
__the rest of the year. this big international tournament._

 _its called the isu grand prix series if you wanna_ _look it up_

_ >Fr international? I knew you competed _

_but that’s awesome!_

_ >i guess _

_ >Don’t sell yourself short, that’s really cool :0 _

_ >I gotta go to work, but I’ll see you at Ez's lesson on Friday :) _

_ >see ya  
_

Rayla turned off her phone screen just as Runaan pulled the car into a parking spot- well, into a driveway. They were in front of a small building which looked to be a repurposed old house. In the past week, Rayla had noticed the buildings in the Harbor area were much smaller and older than those in other portions of the city, with their sleek, imposing skyscrapers. She preferred it to the hustle and bustle of the corporation-filled streets.

Wooden slating and stone accents decorated the front of the structure ahead. A small, new-looking cement stoop led up to a narrow porch and the open front door. Upon entering, the small family saw cloth mankins lining the sides of the front room, dressed in colorful fabrics and dresses and skating costumes. Many were draped in loose strips of cloth, likely displaying some of the options available. Sketches and anatomy templates were taped haphazardly all over the walls, though the space still managed to look neat and tidy. Amidst the organized chaos was a work desk covered with labeled folders and color-sorted pens. Behind the desk sat a beautiful woman who Rayla figured was older than she looked. Her fingers flashed across the keyboard of her computer as her long, gold-painted nails caught the light streaming in from the doorway. The long twists of her hair fell over her shoulders as she leaned towards her computer screen, the golden cuffs that decorated them lightly clinking against each other. She didn't look up from what she was doing when Rayla and her uncles entered, too enthralled in her work to notice. 

"Ah, excuse me?" Ethari spoke up. The woman seemed almost frightened when she snapped her head away from the screen. She obviously hadn't been expecting visitors. 

“Oh, can I help you?” Her voice was nasally with a French accent, thicker in her throat than even Ethari’s. 

“Are you Janai?” Ethari asked, somewhat awkwardly. “We’re here for Rayla Moon…?”

Janai’s eyes widened and she looked at the time in the bottom corner of her computer. “Noon already?” she mumbled to herself, then she looked back up at the customers in front of her. “You are the skating costume consultation, yes?”

All three nodded. Janai stood from her chair and opened a door at the back end of the room. “Come this way, it is less cluttered in here.”

Janai led them into another similar-looking room, though this one was more pulled together. Doors on all three available walls indicated a larger work area further into the house. Rayla figured this room was where she met with clients, based on the neat concept drawings on the walls and the single tidy stack of papers on the wooden conference table

Janai pulled two extra chairs from against the wall and placed them at the table next to the one already there, then sat down on the opposite side. Rayla sat in the middle seat provided, with Ethari and Runaan on either side of her. Janai pulled a notepad and pen out of absolutely nowhere and slid in.

“Before I start bossing you around and telling you your ideas suck, what did you have in mind?”

Rayla sat quietly, expecting Runaan to handle the talking, as usual. Much to her chagrin, however, she felt his and Ethari’s eyes lock onto her.

_"Seriously?"_

"You're an adult Rayla," Runaan said, "you're capable of speaking for yourself."

Janai looked between the three chaotic Scots sitting across from her. She liked the man with short hair; he seemed straight to the point and respectful enough. Though this young girl was something else. Judging by the posture and mannerisms of the other man, Janai figured Rayla's attitude took after his.

"If you aren't sure, maybe tell me some things you do _not_ want? Then we can work from there."

Rayla thought for a moment before letting words spew from her mouth like a volcano. 

"I guess...nothing lacy and flowery. And the two costumes should work together, but also not look the same, you know? I wouldn't mind some illusion designs, maybe on the arms or neckline, but I don't want anything too showy or flashy. Cool colors are probably best."

Janai blinked down at her notepad, surprised she was able to write all that down, despite Rayla's speed. 

"The theme you have selected for this series is 'New Beginnings', yes?" Janai asked. "That is what you sent with your file, anyway. Are you sure you would not like lighter colors to complement the theme?"

Rayla shook her head. "'New Beginnings' is more about myself than anything. And part of that is sorta letting myself live my life freely, and expressing myself however I want. I feel like, with the cooler colors, I can express more… just more, I guess. It's a better representation of me, if that makes sense?"

Janai nodded. She understood where Rayla was going with this.

"I see. Well, I will see what I can come up with, and I will contact you with any concepts I come up with. It may take a while though… this design theme isn't one I'm very familiar with. I haven't even designed a skating costume in years."

Rayla bit her lip and glanced quickly over at Runaan. "How long will it take?" he asked for her.

Janai hummed. "Two weeks total, for the concepts maybe? And then delivery of the materials and however much time it takes me to make the outfits themselves, which all depends on how the designs turn out.

"We don't have much time," Ethari said, "is there anything we can do on our end to speed it up a little?"

Janai opened her mouth to answer, when Rayla's eyes went wide with an idea.

"Wait a minute! If I can bring you some base designs in a few days, do you think that would help you figure out the details and embellishments quicker?"

"Yes, by a decent bit. If you are able to figure out what types of fabric you would need as well, I can order anything I'm missing within the next week."

"Perfect." Rayla stood. "Then we're all set."

Runaan and Ethari exchanged a confused look, then rose from their seats.

"Ah, well, thank you Janai," Ethari said, "we'll get back to you as soon as we're able."

Janai nodded once more, and the odd little family filed out of the room and outside her workshop.

~

"What's that all about, Rayla?" Runaan asked as he backed the car out of the driveway and coasted down the street.

Rayla leaned her head against the car window and watched the buildings blur by.

She smiled.

"I have a friend."

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this one was kinda boring. This'll be one of the last couple set-up chapters before we really get into the *meat* of the story  
> Hopefully this didn't suck, see you in two weeks1


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Corpeli are chaotic good, Rayla is Mentally Damaged™, and we hail the queen.

“Got a hot date or something?”

Callum turned away from the two disposable coffee cups he was filling behind the counter and towards the source of the teasing. He rolled his eyes at the man, who had pulled a chair up to the counter and was sipping his drink. The blonde woman sitting next to him elbowed his arm, almost making him spill his precious coffee. 

“C’mon, Corvus, the kid’s only even got two friends. Do you really think he’d go for one of  _ Viren’s  _ kids?” She said the name of Harrow’s old roommate as if it left a bad taste in her mouth. 

_ “Hey,”  _ Callum feigned hurt feelings, “I have more friends than just Clauds and Soren.”

“Yeah,  _ Opeli,”  _ Harrow joined from off to the side, where he was filling the bakery's register with change for the day, “I hear he’s up to a grand total of  _ three  _ friends now.”

Corvus and Opeli both snickered as Callum’s face flushed. “You are  _ so  _ not helping, dad.”

It seemed to be Roasting Callum Hours.

“Is Amaya not around?” Corvus asked. Callum took a muffin from the case and put it in a Tupperware container. He shook his head. “She and Gren were up ‘til like five this morning running security for some big party in Back Bay. I'm guessing they'll be home sleeping all day.”

Corvus nodded.

“More like Gren probably won’t let her get out of bed until noon,” Opeli remarked, knowing the tender nature of her college friend’s roommate. 

"Gotta get me a friend like him."

_ "I'm  _ a friend like him."

Corvus and Opeli made silent eye contact for a long second, then burst into whooping laughs for no discernible reason.

Callum shook his head at the two dorks (though he himself held the award for World's Biggest Dork) and grabbed a paper cup full of bird feed from the corner of the counter. Harrow always kept free little cups of seeds out for anyone who wanted to feed the pigeons. He was more concerned than anyone Callum had ever met about what the pigeons of the city were consuming on a daily basis.

“Callum, what time is it?” Harrow asked, closing the register. 

Callum checked the time on his phone. “Just about nine.” He slung his satchel over his shoulder and secured the snacks. “I’m gonna go meet my  _ friend,”  _ he looked pointedly at Corvus and Opeli, “I’ll be back by noon for my shift.” 

“Flip the sign on your way out!” Harrow called after him, Callum shooting a thumbs-up over his shoulder in reply.

_ Dork. _

Callum flipped the wooden sign on the front door to the  _ Open  _ side, hearing Harrow tell Corvus and Opeli to "put his bakery back together” before swinging the door shut behind him. 

**~~~**

“You’re late, Callum.”

Callum chuckled as he laid his satchel down on the park bench and sat next to his displeased friend.

"Five minutes is  _ so _ not late," he shot back at Rayla.

"Five minutes is  _ definitely  _ late. And it's not like you had anything better to be doing. Honestly, I'm a little hurt." She jabbed Callum with her elbow. 

“Alright, bigshot," he laughed, "what did you need to ask me about?”

Rayla blew at him. “What’s the rush? All business, no fun. Is everyone here as stale as you?”

“Okay, first off, rude. Second, you’re the one that called me out here saying it’s important.”

Callum handed her one of the coffees he’d filled and a muffin. Rayla sniffed at it skeptically.

“It’s not poisoned, I promise.”

Rayla rolled her eyes and bit in, seemed to think for a moment, then took another bite.

“This is actually good?” she spoke around the food. “Where’s this from, that bakery? Does that guy there make these?”

Callum shook his head. “Ez and I actually tag-team the breakfast type food that gets sold. Our dad does the pastries and stuff.”

Rayla sipped the coffee. “Wait. Your dad…”

“I feel like we’ve had this conversation before.”

“...Have we? Remind me.”

_ “ _ My dad’s the one that owns and runs the bakery…?”

“Wait, oh-  _ OH.  _ I’m an idiot. I really shoulda figured that out.”

She hesitated, then spoke again. “I dunno if this is kinda rude, but is he your...real dad?”

Callum shook his head. “Nah, Ez and I have the same mom, but I had a different dad. Harrow’s my stepdad.”

“Gotcha.”

They sat quietly for a moment, sipping their coffee and listening to morning birds chirp. After a while, a small group of pigeons started hopping around their bench, searching for scraps of food. Callum grabbed the paper cup he’d set next to him and poured some of the feed into his hand, then scattered it across the ground. The pigeons flocked around it, crowding one another to peck at the seeds.

“What did you wanna ask me?” Callum asked.

Rayla took a second to process that he was addressing her. “Oh, yeah. Uh-”

Callum pulled his sketchbook out of his bag and started drawing.

“...are you drawing the trash-panda birds?”

“Are you changing the subject to how I’m drawing the trash-panda birds?”

Rayla huffed.

“How come you’re avoiding asking me?”

Rayla was quiet for a moment, then mumbled around the opening of her coffee cup. “I’m scared you’re gonna say no.”

“Why would I?”

She shrugged. "It's just… a lot, I guess."

"Well, hey," Callum bumped her shoulder with his own, "it's not like I have anything better to do, right?"

_ "Tch. _ Fine." Rayla suppressed a smile. "Remember how yesterday I told you I was on the way to see my designer?"

Callum nodded.

"I kinda came up with a sort of...unconventional idea. To maybe help things go a little quicker."

"Well, you do seem to excel at that."

"What, unconventional thinking?"

"Unconventional  _ everything,  _ really."

"Why do I feel like I'm being insulted?"

"I dunno, why  _ do _ you?"

Rayla giggled and pushed him, nearly causing him to spill his coffee. 

_ "Anyway,"  _ she continued, "I was thinking… I mean, you're an artist, right? And I'm sure you're well past creative. So, for these designs…  _ ugh,  _ how do I  _ speak-" _

"Slow down," Callum said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Rayla took a breath, then continued. "If my designer were to generate concepts for the outfits herself, it might take more time than I have. She's got other customers, other priorities, and we just don't have time for her to design and assemble these things one at a time. But if I can at least bring her some basic concepts to work with, maybe that could help. All she'd need to do is modify them, add details, and put it together. The hard part would already be done for her. So I was wondering, if it's okay, if you really  _ don't  _ have too much else going on, I mean, you don't have to, it's just an idea, but-"

"-Rayla,  _ relax."  _ Callum cut off her anxious rambling. "I can help you come up with some ideas to bring her. That's what you wanted to ask, right?"

Rayla nodded.

"How come that was so hard?"

He wanted to know why she couldn't ask such a huge favor of him? Rayla could think of a thousand reasons. Because she was used to scaring people away. Because most people she asked for favors ended up stabbing her in the back. Because the last two people to give everything they had to her disappeared.

Now, was she about to say absolutely any of this?

She shrugged. "Just didn't think you'd wanna, I guess."

Frickin'

Nailed it.

**~~~**

After spending a bit more time (read: two hours) just wandering around the Common, Callum announced that he should head back. He grabbed some actual food (because as much as Rayla would disagree, coffee was  _ not _ a proper source of nutrition) on the way back to the bakery for his shift. Rayla tagged along, insisting she didn’t have anything else to do. Callum was almost positive she  _ did,  _ but he wasn't about to argue. He enjoyed the company. He enjoyed  _ her  _ company, if he was quite honest with himself.

Despite having known her for just a few weeks, Callum felt a sense of comfort around Rayla. It was as if her presence itself was a safe space. Safe from what, he had no idea, but safe nonetheless. There was still an air of awkwardness around them, of course, as would be expected of two people who have known each other for such a short time. Callum didn't feel he could be totally open with her, and he was certain she had walls built around herself that wouldn't be crumbling any time soon, much less around him. In the grand scheme of things, they hardly knew each other. 

But it was nice to have a friend. He had Claudia and Soren, but he'd known the siblings as long as he'd been alive, and they were more like an extra brother and sister to him than anything else. Rayla was someone he felt at ease around. Something about her just made it so easy to trust her. With her, he could kick his shoes off and stay awhile.

Callum tied on his work apron and glanced across the bakery at the table where Rayla was enjoying another coffee. Three coffees in three hours was honestly nowhere near as bad as Callum might have predicted.

For the next hour, Rayla stayed at that same table, just scrolling on her phone. After a while, she put earbuds in for some time, took them out, typed something, and made a phone call that lasted no more than ten seconds.

She looked bored. But there was something more in her face, in her eyes. Something anxious.

**~**

“Whatcha up to?”

Rayla looked up from her phone to see Callum standing over her table. He placed another coffee in front of her and said it was on him. 

“Shouldn’t you be working?” she asked as he sat down across from her.

"Lunch break."

"An hour after your shift starts?"

Callum shrugged. 

“You just ate, like, not even two hours ago.”

“Why eat food when I can eat social interaction?”

… 

“That was stupid.”   
“Yes, it was.”

Rayla sipped the fresh coffee. It was darker than she normally ordered, but it’s not like she was picky.

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

He hesitated. "It's not really my place, but… it sorta feels like you're avoiding skating. It's kinda hard to believe that you really don't have anything to do today when you've got this big competition thing coming up. And I can't imagine that even if you really  _ didn't  _ have anything you need to do, you would  _ actually  _ want to follow me to work. And I don't think it’s just procrastination. You're outright ignoring it.”

Rayla was quiet. She had no idea how he always saw right through her. 

“Skating…” she paused, unsure how to answer. “Skating is… hard for me.”   
Okay, she could have worded that better.

“I mean, I dunno, it’s hard to explain, I guess. Something happened a while back, and I guess it sorta spiralled into… whatever this is.” 

“Can I ask what happened?”   
Rayla shifted in her seat. Callum could tell the question was somewhat off-putting.

“Eh… I’d rather you didn’t.”

He nodded, and watched her take another sip of the bitter coffee. Then, after a moment, “Can I ask something else then? I’ll leave you alone after this. I know I’m probably being kinda invasive.”

… it couldn’t hurt, right?

“Nah, go for it.”

“If it makes you feel… I don’t know, sad? Or if you don’t have any real passion for it anymore, how come you still do it? Skate, I mean.”

_ That  _ was an answer she really had to think about. Why  _ did  _ she keep skating, despite it making her remember things she wanted to forget? Well… why  _ wouldn’t  _ she keep doing it?

Rayla nodded in thought and looked down at her coffee. “When you do something for this long, your whole world kinda starts to revolve around it. You can’t really… up and quit, y’know? Imagine if the Earth just  _ poof _ ed from existence. What does the moon do now?”

Callum thought. What  _ would  _ it do? It would just keep orbiting the sun, droning on with no real purpose. He understood that feeling. There were a few times Callum thought he might give up art for good. There used to be those moments when drawing made him feel frustrated and angry, made him recall events he wished weren’t true. Yet he always felt that he was in too deep to just quit. He’d been drawing for so long, it became as essential as breathing to him. As if it were the Earth he orbited.

“It means a lot to you. I can tell that much.”

Rayla nodded.

“Hey,” he said, his voice gentle, “I can tell you don’t hate skating. You  _ love  _ it. You look so  _ free  _ when I watch you. But I think that, maybe, whatever happened to you before made you lose your spirit. Everything skating means to you…” he paused, thinking about all the hard times his art helped him through. “... everything it’s done for you- that’s all still there. You just have to find your passion for it again.”

Rayla smiled at him.  _ God,  _ how did he understand her so well, so thoroughly?

She supposed he was right. Rayla knew she was just holding herself back, and she knew what she was truly capable of. Callum made it sound so _easy_ for her to bounce back, and she wished it were. She was sure Callum understood that this was more complicated than a few reassuring words, but Rayla appreciated the push he was trying to give her. It was different from the kind of push she usually received from Runaan, his voice driving her to do better, work harder. She knew Runaan was just looking out for her, trying to help her reach the fullest of her potential, but something about...maybe the way Callum said it? The fact that it was coming from someone she hadn’t known (and put up with) for her whole life? She didn’t know, but it almost, _almost,_ gave her a glimmer of hope that she really could push past this block. 

Maybe they weren’t such strangers, after all.

A moment later, the bell on the door of the bakery rang, and Harrow’s booming voice enthusiastically greeted whoever just entered, exclaiming how they hadn’t been over in a while. Callum turned to see the blonde, tan-skinned girl greeting Harrow with an unfair amount of dignity that a teen her age  _ should not possess.  _ Rayla watched him smile and raise a hand to wave at the young girl.

“Oh, hey Aanya!” he called. 

Aanya turned her head and smiled back. She gave a little wave and started weaving between the tables to reach where he sat.   
“Who’s that?” Rayla leaned over and muttered.

“That’s Aanya, she’s one of Ezran’s friends. Her moms are  _ loaded.” _

“Hey, Callum!” Aanya said as she approached the table.

“It’s been a while! How come you’re here?”

Aanya tapped her fingers on the table. “Ezran called me asking for help with something. El should be here in a few minutes, too.”

Callum appeared perplexed. “What did he need help with?”

She hummed in thought. “That’s… confidential.”

“...He did something crazy and now he’s in over his head.”   
“Yes, pretty much.”

“Well, uh…” he glanced across at Rayla, “good luck with that, I guess.”

Aanya shook her head. “With what he just brought home? You’d better keep that luck for yourself.”

Callum stared blankly at the girl.

_ “What did Ezran bring home?” _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not really a fan of this chapter, but as you can probably tell by the ending, the next chapter will be chaotic and wholesome in all the best ways.  
> Thank you for reading :)


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> GIVE HARROW DAD OF THE YEAR AWARD
> 
> read end notes :p

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We got to 2000 hits!!! Thank you so much for reading.  
> Here's a fun (read: bad & short) little filler chapter for you guys. Be sure to read the note at the end for an important announcement :)

“Where is he?”

Ellis shut Ezran’s bedroom door and sat criss-cross next to Aanya on the floor. Her cargo shorts and beanie largely contrasted her friend’s neat white dress, as did their personalities, but the girls and Ezran couldn’t have been closer. 

“Here.” Ezran stood and opened his closet door. There was a sound of rummaging in the darkness of the back corner, then something grey and fluffy streaked out of the closet and dive-bombed Ellis. 

The little pomeranian bounced around her, sniffing her and placing licks all over her arms and face. Ellis’s laughter rang out and the dog yipped. The scene even incited a snicker from Aanya.

“How’d you end up with this little guy?” Aanya asked Ezran as he sat back down across from his friends.

“This morning. I went for a walk and I saw him tied up on a fence with a rope.”

“And there weren’t like, bowls or anything out for him?”

Ezran shook his head. “Just this.” He handed Aanya a small lightning bolt-shaped tag. “It was on the ground near him. Other than this, I couldn’t find anything about who his owner might be.”

“‘Zym,’” Aanya read from the tag. 

Upon hearing his name, the dog perked up and darted over to Aanya, clambering into her lap and yipping happily at her. She smiled down at him and stroked his fur. “Guess we’ve gotta figure out what to do with you, huh buddy?” She looked back at Ezran. “You gave him a bath already?”

Ezran nodded. “Soon as I got back. I got him to eat, too.”

“What’re you gonna do, though?” Ellis asked. “You’ve already got Bait. I know  _ my  _ parents would be real upset if I brought home another stray.”

As if on cue, there was scratching at the door, and Ezran stood to let his grumpy old dog in. 

Bait waddled inside and his eyes immediately landed on Zym. If it was even possible, his face drooped even more, and he turned away, sitting right in Ezran’s spot with his back turned to the other dog. The three teens snickered at Bait’s jealous display and Aanya went on petting Zym. 

“You have to do something before your dad and brother come up,” the blonde said, “How long is that, a few hours?”

“I mean, maybe your dad  _ will  _ be okay with it. He’s a lot cooler than my parents.”

“I don’t think we even have space for another dog though. But I can’t just leave him. If I can at least find someone who would take him…”

“My parents would  _ never,”  _ Aanya said, “Annika is the exact  _ opposite  _ of hypoallergenic.”

She thought for a moment. “Wait- what if you ask to keep him for a little while until you can find someone to take him?”

“Ohh, yeah!” Ellis agreed, “Then you could take your time and make sure he goes to someone you can trust.”

“Maybe…” Ezran furrowed his brow and sat down next to Bait, then his eyes lit up with an idea.”I got it! Okay, here’s the plan-”

Ezran was cut off by a knock at the door.

“Ez?” his brother’s voice called from the other side.

_ “It’s Callum!”  _ Ezran whisper-yelled to his friends.

_ “Quick, the closet!”  _ Aanya suggested. She collected Zym in her arms and rushed to hide him.

Ezran dashed over to the door and pressed against it. “What is it, Callum? We’re, um, we’re in the middle of a game!” He turned and looked at his scrambling friends.  _ “Hurry!”  _ he hissed. 

“I brought you and your friends some snacks, can I bring them in?”

Ellis slammed the closet shut just as Callum turned the doorknob. 

“H-hey, Callum!” Ezran grinned, stepping away from the opening door. 

Callum looked around the room, seeing no evidence of whatever “game” they may have been playing. The two girls bore much-too-wide smiles and were leaning against the closet door in an “act natural” manner. 

Callum walked in and placed a plate of cookies on Ezran’s nightstand.

“Uh, have fun?” Callum said as his brother ushered him out. “Me and dad’ll come back up later to make d-”

A faint  _ yip  _ came from behind Ellis and Aanya.

Callum looked down at Ezran.

“Uhh… squeaky stuffed animal fell off the shelf?”

Callum eyed him dubiously but didn’t argue. “Uh- _ huh.  _ Well, just make sure you pick up your ‘stuffed animal’ and  _ whatever else might be in there.” _

“ _ Uh-huh, yup got it bye!”  _ Ezran pushed Callum through the doorway and slammed it closed before his brother could make any protests.

Ezran listened at the door until he could no longer hear Callum’s footsteps and shot a thumbs-up at his friends. Both let out sighs of relief and Ezran slumped to the floor. Aanya opened the closet door and let Zym run back into the room.

“He totally knows,” she said.

“He  _ definitely  _ knows,” Ellis agreed, “Do you think he’ll tell your dad?”

Ezran shook his head. “He doesn’t like getting in my business. He’ll probably be weird about it the rest of the day, though.”

“Weird is better than busted.”

“What are we going to do, Ez?” Aanya asked, “You said you had a plan?”   
“Oh! Right. Okay, here’s what we’ll do…”

**~~~**

“Ezran!” Harrow called from the kitchen, “Dinner in five!”

Ezran turned to Aanya and Ellis. “Okay, everyone ready?”   
His friends nodded. 

“Let’s do this.”

Ellis picked Zym up and placed him in the closet, then crawled in and curled up in the corner with him, phone in hand. Ezran shut the closet door, then he and Aanya left his room, turning on the bathroom light and closing the door as they passed it. 

Ezran and Aanya entered the kitchen. Callum was sitting at the table on his computer, and Harrow was tossing vegetables in a pan at the stove. 

“Hey, guys!” he greeted when he heard the kids enter. 

_ “Hey, dad!”  _ Ezran practically squeaked out, bouncing on the balls of his feet. Aanya suppressed a laugh at his sad attempt to calm his nerves.

Harrow switched off the stove and turned to them. “Where’s Ellis?”

“In the bathroom,” Aanya answered, completely calm and without missing a beat, of course.

Harrow seemed to accept this answer, and he turned back to the food, dividing his vegetables among the plates on the counter. 

“S-so dad,” Ezran started, wringing his hands, “I- or, we kinda have something… something to ask?”

Harrow turned around again, puzzled. “Uh, okay?”

He glanced over at Callum, who threw his hands up defensively. “I’ve got nothing to do with this.”

Ezran sat down at the end of the table. “Okay, so, I’ve got this friend, Joph- Joseph- Jophus. Jophus.”   
“You have a friend named… Jophus?”   
“Yes! And um,  _ Jophus  _ found this dog tied up somewhere, and Jophus wants to keep the dog for a little while, except Jophus already  _ has  _ a dog, and Jophus isn’t sure his da- uh,  _ parents-  _ would be okay with having another-  _ a  _ dog in the house.”

Aanya resisted the urge to bang her head against a wall.

“So Jophus wants to keep the dog for a while, kinda foster it, y’know? Until he can find a good place for the dog to go.”

“Uh,” Harrow glanced at Aanya, “Okay?”   
“So, do you think Jophus’s parents will be okay with it?”

Aanya was shaking her head at Ezran’s horrid “explanation”. Okay. So this definitely was  _ not  _ about ‘Jophus’. 

“Well, is ‘Jophus’ going to take care of the dog? Will he take it on walks, make sure it gets fed, and give it baths?”

Ezran nodded aggressively.

“Ezran, what kind of dog is it?”

Ezran slunk in his seat a little. “Pomeranian.”

“Those are high maintenance, you know.” Ezran nodded, and Harrow looked over at Callum. “What do you think? You’ve been quiet.”

Callum continued typing on his computer. “A dog other than Bait? Why not? We could use a dog with a personality trait other than ‘miserable,’” he mused.

Harrow sighed. “I don’t know, Ez, are you sure? Can’t Opeli or someone take it?”

“She’s way too busy, she wouldn’t be able to take care of him,” Ezran said, “You know Aanya can’t take him, and Ellis already has Ava.”

Harrow pinched the bridge of his nose. He sighed, defeated. “Where is he?”

Ezran grinned and nodded at Aanya. She disappeared down the hall, and a moment later, she and Ellis returned together. In Ellis’s arms was snuggled a grey ball of fluff. Two pointy little ears pricked up, and Ezran’s ‘stuffed animal’ lifted his head and started yapping his brains out. He tried to wriggle out of Ellis’s grasp, and she set him down before he could hurt himself. 

Zym trounced over to Harrow and pawed at his leg, tail wagging with a  _ vengeance.  _ Harrow ruffled the fur on his head and scooped him up, then walked the excited puppy over to Callum. Callum chuckled and scruffed Zym’s fur.

“Ah, see dad?” he said, “He isn’t  _ nearly  _ as sulky as Bait.”

Bait could be heard grumbling in the corner. Case in point.

“So…?” Ezran looked expectantly at his father.

Harrow looked down at Zym for a moment, then groaned.  _ “Fine.  _ You win.”

Aanya let out a sigh of relief, and Ellis turned to Ezran and gave him a hearty fistbump.

“Thank you, dad!” Ezran sprung out of his seat, and Harrow held out a finger.

_ “Bupbupbup-  _ conditions.”

Ezran and his friends sat down.

“First off, it’s for two months at most. I’ll help you out if you ask, but finding him a home has to be your responsibility. Agreed?”

Ezran nodded. 

“Second, you have to take care of him. Walk him, pick his food when we go to the store, all that jazz.”   
Ezran nodded again. He’d comply with any demand if it meant keeping Zym in the house.

“Objections, Callum?”

Callum shook his head.

“Okay then,” Harrow said at last. “He can stay. I’ll take him to the vet tomorrow before we open. But for now…” he set Zym on the floor and turned away from his son’s smiling face. He grabbed two plates and held them out to the kids. “Who’s ready for dinner?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just wanted to let you guys know that I'll be taking a short hiatus. Exam week starts on the 15th for me, so until then, I want to make sure I can really focus on studying. The hiatus will last from the time this chapter comes out until my exams are complete, and then I'll start writing the next chapter. So expect chapter 8 in about 3-4 weeks.  
> Thank you guys for always being understanding about this stuff, and thanks for all your support thus far. See you soon!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Harrow is confused, Callum is a Backyardigan, and apparently Backyardigans draw really fkin fast.  
> Trash-panda birds also make a comeback.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY I'M BACK and this is a complete dumpster fire until the last, like, 1000 words.  
> shit gets seasoned (unlike my mother's cooking) after this chapter I swear

_“Callum, we gotta go!”_

_“Shoot,_ yeah, one sec, dad!”

Callum flipped his sketchbook shut and tucked it away in the satchel hanging from the back of his desk chair. He swiped his bag and flung his bedroom door open, darting through his apartment, down the stairs, and into the near-empty bakery. 

Harrow stood by one of the front tables, checking his watch. He looked up when Callum came thundering down the stairs.

“It’s almost seven, we gotta get outta here if we’re gonna make it to the school by eleven.”

“Yeah yeah, I know,” Callum said, crossing behind the counter and grabbing a bagel out of the case. “I got wrapped up with something."

Callum glanced across the room and saw Ezran lounging on a beanbag chair in the back, immersed in a book. He knew his brother had always been the early riser of the two, but he would never understand Ezran's need to be up first no matter what time it may be.

“How come you’re awake?” 

Ezran looked up at Callum when he realized he was being addressed. He rubbed the sleepiness out of his eyes and closed his book, then weaved through the tables and over to the older boy. “Dad’s not exactly quiet in the morning. I dunno _how_ you were still asleep with all his banging.” Ezran glanced over at Harrow, who shrugged apologetically.

“I wasn’t _sleeping,_ I was- _woah!”_ Callum dodged out of the way of the two furry blurs that bolted straight in front of him. “Bait, be nice!” he called after the dogs, who were chasing each other around the bakery and had far too much energy so early in the morning. Over the past two days, Zym had quickly made a habit of yipping in the older dog’s face until he finally woke up to play (no less than twice a day), and the two tended to get a bit rambunctious.

“I was doing something.”  
“You mean drawing.”

“No- okay, yeah, but I was _doing_ something.”

Ezran shrugged. “Can I see it?”

“Nope,” Callum shook his head, “Not ‘til it’s done.”

"Promise you'll show me later, though? You haven't been drawing a lot lately."

Callum chuckled. "If it's any good once I finish, you can see it."

He smiled back at Ezran's excited grin, but internally whacked himself on the head with a stick. What he was working on _needed_ to turn out well. He wasn't sure why he had insinuated it could be anything other than perfect.

"Alrighty, Ez," Harrow said, pulling the car keys out of his pocket. "Corvus should be here around eight-thirty to open up. He'll be here all day, so make sure you help him out if he needs it."

Ezran nodded and Harrow gestured for Callum to head out.

"Dinner's in the fridge, you can eat whatever for lunch. Make sure you bring the dogs upstairs before Corvus gets here."

"I will," Ezran affirmed, "See you guys later."

He turned to go back to his reading spot, then spun back around. "Callum!" he called after his brother before the door shut behind Harrow, "Make sure you show me!"

Callum shot a thumbs-up through the window and left with Harrow towards the parking lot.

  
  


"What were you working on earlier?"

Harrow signaled and started up the entry ramp to the interstate.

"Huh?" Callum pulled out his earbuds, not catching what his father said over his deafening classical music.

"What were you drawing that had you so caught up?"

"Oh." Callum pulled his sketchbook from his satchel sitting on the floor of the car and opened it to the page he was working on before. "I told you about how Rayla asked me to help with the base designs for her skating outfits, right?"

Harrow nodded, and they entered the highway. 

Callum rested his head against his window, looking out at the other cars speeding past. "I'm having trouble. I know it doesn't have to be super detailed or anything, but I still want it to be good, y'know? The point is that her designer has something to go off of when she's making the actual costumes. And I wanna make sure that whatever I do, it works for _Rayla,_ who she is as a person and a skater."

Harrow was quiet for a moment.

He had no idea what Callum was talking about.

Not that he needed to know that.

"While I get where you're struggling… you're totally overthinking this, aren't you."

"Oh yeah, absolutely I am."

"Well, _I_ think you should rest that genius art brain of yours for the next few hours and take a nap. You're about to visit Duren! Best arts school this side of the country, right? Take your mind off this for a little bit. Maybe stepping away from it will help you focus better when we get home."

"I mean, yeah…"

"This is your dream school, isn't it? Just enjoy this visit. Leave all the stressful stuff in the back seat."

Callum chuffed and smiled at his stepfather. Harrow always seemed to know what to say. He had this sage-like collectedness to him that could always put Callum at ease.

Callum tucked his sketchbook back into his bag. As his mother would have said, out of sight, out of mind (though that was mostly for when she hid jelly tarts from herself and Ezran. 'Fiends', Harrow would call them).

He leaned his seat back. Using his jacket as a blanket, Callum closed his eyes and took a breath. Harrow was probably right. He needed a brain break.

  
  


Callum was positive that at some point during the welcome presentation, Harrow became completely lost, even having been a college student once himself. It was a lot to take in. So much information being thrown at them at once- all the buildings on campus and possible majors and clubs- Callum almost regretted not taking notes.

At the end presentation, Harrow pulled out his phone and went into his emails.

“Okay, we’re supposed to meet your tour guide in ten minutes outside the… Thiessen Dining Hall. _So…_ ”

Before Harrow could open the PDF of a school map attached to the email, Callum started down the hall and straight towards the door.

“...I guess it’s that way, then.”

It wasn’t as if Callum had spent half his high school years studying the map or anything.

Thiessen Hall, just like all the other buildings at Duren, was constructed of round tan and grey cobblestones. The wide building almost had the air of a castle to it, with its archtop windows and its turret-like shape climbing three stories into the sky.

“The guide’s name is Sabah. She should be around here somewhere…” Harrow scanned the area in front of the building and finally spotted who he was looking for. He waved the neatly dresse young woman wearing a clean white nametag over to them. Her refreshing and cleanly appearance wasn’t quite what Callum had come to expect of art students, but he more than welcomed the change of pace.

Sabah pulled a sheet of paper from the pocket of her casual yellow blazer. “Hello!” she greeted politely, through a bit of an accent, “Are you…” she squinted at the words printed on the paper. “Callum… Cattle- Katuh- Kaduhlis?”

Callum nodded and shook her hand. He’d given up on correcting people a long time ago. She turned to Harrow and held out her hand for him to shake.

“I’m Sabah,” she said, “I’ll be taking you guys around campus today.”

Harrow nodded and shook her hand. “Harrow,” he replied, “I’m Callum’s stepfather.

“Right, thanks for coming today.” Sabah turned back towards the building. “Our tour starts here, the main dining hall! They’re actually doing some maintenance right now, so we won’t be going inside. There are two other dining halls as well. Feel free to enjoy a meal at any of them on your next visit.”

The paper Sabah was holding slipped out of her fingers. She quickly stooped down and snatched it before it could hit the ground, then stood and faced Harrow and Callum again, clearing her throat as if she’d been caught dancing around in a clown suit.

“There are five meal plans,” she explained, “I have the 14-meal plan, which includes two-hundred dollars in declining balance. There are four others, and you can find all the details on the school webpage. 

Well, Sabah didn’t seem to be the most confident of guides, but Callum was sure she would get the job done just the same.

Their next location was the library, which the group was allowed inside this time. It was built into an old, small chapel, ivy snaking up one side. The interior maintained most of its original structure, save for the chancel and sanctuary, which had been removed to allow for more seating space. The nave was filled with rows of dark wood tables, each topped with a little bronze lamp that served to add to the cozy glow of the building. The side aisles were lined with shelves upon shelves of books and manuals to peruse. A few students were scattered about the library, looking for books or studying at one of the tables. 

Harrow breathed in the scent of the old wood and basked in the velichor of the space. It was a familiar feeling, and when he saw the small smile gracing his stepson’s lips, he knew Callum thought the same.

Harrow remembered well Sarai’s fleeting fantasy to travel to every library she possibly could. More specifically, she’d wanted to find all the old, dusty stacks of wood in the country and visit every one of them. She always had a _thing_ for history and antiques. As far as Harrow was concerned, it just went to reinforce her dorky, free-spirited personality.

In short, Sarai would have _loved_ this place.

“This is the Schäfer Library,” Sabah explained as they moved away from the door and down the left aisle. “Most students use it as a place to study or gather for clubs. There’s an informational center nearby too, with computers and textbooks and a coffee shop.”

Callum nodded, staring up at the tall, narrow ceiling, and Sabah continued. “The chapel itself was built in 1785. It got abandoned at some point- I think there was some kind of infestation?- and in 1873 it was established as a campus library, eleven years after the school was founded.”

“You know quite a bit about the campus, huh,” Harrow commented.

One side of Sabah’s mouth pushed her cheek up in a small smirk, and she pulled a small stack of notecards from her sweater pocket, waving them for him to see. “Only because I’m getting paid to, honestly.”

Callum didn’t so much as acknowledge the interaction taking place behind him, his attention instead drawn towards the sizeable stain-glass window at the back of the building. Tiles painted every color Callum knew swirled around each other in a mesmerizing dance. Scattered around the elaborate design were several depictions of birds in flight. Each was encircled by patterns Callum recognized from his art history classes as symbols for love.

Sabah noticed where his gaze had fallen and stepped next to him. “The stained glass is the only aspect of the building that wasn’t a part of the original architecture. The old glass was all replaced by the school’s founder before the library opened, in the name of his wife.”

Callum nodded. His mind flicked back to his mother, just for a moment, then he turned back to Sabah.

“What’s next?”

‘Next’ turned out to be an academic building in the visual arts college, with a cozy lobby area and several staircases leading up to classrooms. Afterwards, Sabah brought them to the student center and listed off clubs she thought Callum may be interested in based on his resumé, including Illustration, Queer Artists Collective, and Student Galleries, among others. Callum had never exactly been a stranger to student clubs in high school, and he wasn’t expecting to shy off in college.  
(Callum was vastly overestimating how much free time college students have on their hands.)

“Okay!” Sabah said as she led Callum and Harrow into a garden and towards a brick building visible on the other side. “Last stop is one of the main dorm buildings.”

She led them down a cobblestone path, past flowers of every color and shrubbery and man-made streams.

Callum of course knew about Duren’s ever famous Schulz Garden, what with all his research on the school (read: obsessive research since tenth grade). The trio passed under an arbor, neatly overgrown with vines and flowers, into another section of the garden. The paths led straight to the dorm building, and rather than flowers and floriate arrangements, there were instead short, rectangular shrubs lining the walkways and laid out in circular patterns around the centerpiece of the garden- a statue.

Callum and Harrow’s gazes brushed over it at first, but as they approached it, the figure seized their attention, and they halted in front of it. Sabah could have sworn they’d been caught in a trance. 

The woman, though sculpted of cold granite, had such _warmth_ in her face, as if she had truly been alive, just turned to stone. She sat neatly on her podium, her skirt falling over her knees and flowing over the ground. Her kind eyes were turned skyward, and in her hand, she grasped a ribbon, on the other end of which was a flock of birds. Pigeons. One of the pigeons grasped the end of the ribbon in its beak, as if trying to carry the woman away with them.

And all Callum saw was his mother. 

The soft yet confident almond eyes, the long, braided hair, and the tattoo she’d had on her collarbone of a pigeon in flight. 

_Isn’t it odd that you never see city birds fly?_ she’d wondered aloud one day at the park with Callum and baby Ezran. _Why do you think that is?_

Callum smiled at the memory of his answer. _They’re pro’lly scared of heights._

His mother had been quite amused by his answer. She’d let out that _laugh_ that he missed _so much,_ the one that his stepfather’s eyes glazed over at the sound of when watching old videos.

 _Well, I think,_ Sarai had told Callum, _it’s because they’ll only take flight when true, pure love flies too._

Callum remembered his own response of _Mommy, that’s so gross,_ and the sound of his mother laughing again.

What he wouldn’t give to go back to those days.

  
Callum felt a sudden urge to reach for a pencil. He felt his hand linger over his satchel, where his sketchbook was still tucked away.

_Fly away, huh?_

He was brought back to the present by a quiet chuckle from Sabah. 

“Martha Schäfer,” she said. When Callum and Harrow turned to her, questioning, she elaborated, “That’s who this is. The wife of the school’s founder, Otto Schulz. According to the story of the school’s founding, Schulz saw her sitting in the grassy field of a park, all alone, feeding the pigeons. Schulz fell in love at first sight, and decided to speak to her. Eventually, the two got married, but Martha fell ill with cholera. She spent all the time she was able taking care of children who’d gotten it, instead of looking after herself. Following her death, Schulz bought the land of that park and instituted a school. Martha had always dreamed of attending school and learning about music, so Otto thought it fit to turn her favorite place into a school of music. The grounds we’re standing on right now is the place Schulz first saw her feeding the birds.”

Harrow hummed thoughtfully. “Quite the origin story.”

Sabah nodded. “Martha and Otto never had children, so before he died, he sold the land to a wealthy family he was close with, the Durens, and they helped the school grow into what it is today.”

The name Duren sounded all too familiar in Callum’s head, but he couldn’t _quite_ put his finger on it. (Truly, a genius of his generation.)

Sabah gave Callum and Harrow another moment to admire the statue, then, “Our last stop is right this way.’ She gestured to the path leading to the building. “Welcome to Pigeon Hall.”

  
  


“So,” Harrow said as he turned on the car, Callum settling into the passenger seat, “Learn anything good?”

Callum rested his chin in his palm and thought for a moment.

"...That inspiration can come from anything around you,” he muttered, “Especially the places you don't expect."

"...Callum I meant about the school. What are you, a Backyardigan?"

Callum blinked and snapped out of his thoughts, chuckling sheepishly. He pulled his sketchbook and pencil from his bag and flicked to the pages where he’d begun the designs for Rayla’s costumes. He jotted a quick note, then tucked his things back into his bag.

The image of the garden statue flashed through his mind again.

Harrow had been right earlier. Duren was indeed the _best_ school Callum could dream of.

  
  


“Hey Ez,” Harrow yawned, rubbing his eye and setting the car keys on the bakery counter. “Everything go okay today?”

Ezran opened his mouth to answer, when a blur dashed in front of him, scarf flapping behind.

Up in his bedroom, Callum plunked in front of his desk and threw open his sketchbook. He dumped his many drawing pencils out of the cup on his desk and selected the lightest option. 

Graphite met paper, and for the first time in what felt like forever, Callum’s hand connected with the paper, and he began to draw.

Callum checked his clock. Only just past seven in the evening, impressively enough. He glanced over his work one last time and gave it an approving nod, as if it had completed some difficult task and earned a new patch. He reached for his phone, which he hadn’t touched once in the past two hours, and opened his contacts.

He pressed his most recent caller.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the link to art of the statue by my friend Maia, @mawyita.draws on Instagram. Go check her out! She's been really great helping me with ideas for this AU.  
> https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ZEG1BhNidJX-_QBpSuiPCaXELL8J4LbDXJo3N7kqcA4/edit?usp=sharing  
> I did a "meet the writer" thing on the insta with art by another friend of mine, so be sure to check that out as well!
> 
> So, my hiatus turned out to be a *little* longer than expected. And I'm gonna be real with you guys, the thought had crossed my mind to just drop the story where it was. Since the end of last semester, I just had zero motivation or energy, and a couple of weeks ago I noticed my mental health kinda deteriorating.  
> This chapter was a challenge for me to write, not only because it's just something difficult for me to stretch into a comprehensible and interesting story, but also because I really had to push myself to sit down and write more than a hundred words at a time.  
> The last week has really been a lot better for me and I'm going pretty steady now! I'm actually quite proud of the last bit of this chapter, solely because I managed to produce something of substance.  
> I promise I'm here to stay! I'm really dedicated to this fic and I have so many ideas to explore. Thank you so much for hanging in there and staying around over this long hiatus, I appreciate you guys more than you realize.  
> Thanks for all your support and hits so far. See you soon.  
> \- froppii


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Runaan is dad (as in parent), Kazi is baby, and Rayla is rude

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry it's a couple days late hkjfhgk  
> I think it's a little ooc for Rayla but I mean, ig it makes sense for her to not have her same energy and attitude around people she's not super comfortable or familiar with  
> hope you enjoy regardless. we'll get back to plot development next chapter :p

“Under-rotated the lutz-”

“-not even by a quarter!”

“Go again.”

“Oh, come _on.”_

Rayla let out an audible huff and fell back into her choreography as Runaan stood at the far end of the ice, watching her critically.

Runaan felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see his husband standing behind him on the other side of the barrier.

“Hey,” he greeted, placing his hand over Ethari’s.

“Hey,” Ethari pecked Runaan’s cheek, “how goes it? It’s gettin’ late.”

Runaan furrowed his brow. “What time is it?”

“‘Bout quarter to seven.”

“Is she here yet?”

“Should be soon. Did ya tell Rayla she’s comin’?”

“Nah,” Runaan shook his head, “it’d just distract her. You know how she gets-”

Runaan cut himself off, catching Rayla’s small mistake out of the corner of his eye. “Rayla-” he called across the ice.

“I know, I know,” she grumbled, “slow exit.”

“Just go back to spins, we’ll work on it tomorrow.”

Runaan felt a _buzz_ in his pocket and pulled out his phone.

“Janai’s nearly here,” he said, reading the notification on his screen, “her assistant, too. Could you go meet them out front?”

Ethari nodded. “‘Course. Consider givin’ her a break after, yeah?”

Ethari patted his husband’s shoulder and left the rink, while Runaan turned his attention back to Rayla, who was in the middle of a sit-spin. She rose from it slowly, repositioning into a back-scratch spin, then pushed out on the edge of her blade and smoothly continued her momentum through the following step sequence. 

“You’re off-center,” Runaan observed when she passed near him, “what’s on your mind?”

Rayla stopped and leaned back against the barrier, a few arms lengths from her coach.

“Nothing.”

“You know better than to lie to me.”

Rayla turned her eyes downward to her skates on the ice. She remained quiet. Runaan sighed and pushed off the barrier, gliding to the exit gate next to Rayla. 

“Wrap up and come to the lounge,” he said, stoic. He’d always been able to read Rayla, ever since she was a child, though she never could tell what was going through his mind. Ever the straight-laced man, he’d never been particularly extraverted with his emotions, much like Rayla herself, but living in his own head all the time made him the perfect person to get Rayla to open up.

And, just as always, he saw right through her.

Rayla took a few cool-down laps, stretched and packed her skates away, then headed for the small staff lounge in the main building.

She found Runaan waiting for her, as expected, snacking on a pouch of cranberries in the corner. She shook her head when he offered her some and took a seat on the futon they kept for the rare instances any of the tired coaches could catch a break. Runaan set his snack down on the side table and sat next to Rayla on the futon. He had always been one of the few people she comfortably allowed into her personal space.

“Hey,” he said, nudging her with his elbow, “What’s nagging at you, hm? You’ve been off since the training season started.”

“It’s noth-”

Runaan shot her a _look,_ and she huffed. There was no getting out of it.

“I dunno. Just kinda unmotivated, I guess.”

Runaan hummed in thought. “That’s not all though. Is it anything to do with your hiatus? Maybe your mind and body are having trouble readjusting.”

“I guess,” she shrugged, “but… I mean after, y’know, we found out about my parents, you know how hard it was for me to skate.”

Runaan nodded. He remembered how Rayla had struggled to even look at the ice, to even be around him and Ethari. She was reminded too much of her parents.

“It’s already hard enough. You know better than anyone,” she continued, “Doing something my whole life and then just… stopping. I really thought I was done, at one point. I dunno, it’s hard to explain. I can’t find the… passion for it, I guess? And skating without any real feeling towards it feels pointless. Like I’m torturing myself, thinking about my parents but not being able to put those feelings into my passion for it. I dunno if that makes sense.”

“It does,” Runaan placed a hand on her shoulder, “Believe me. You have to find an outlet, and skating has always been that for you. But now you’re disconnected.”

Rayla nodded.

“It’s not just your performance that’s suffering from this, you know. It’s your mind, too. Don’t try to pretend you’ve been eating properly lately.”

Rayla made certain to look _anywhere_ but at Runaan.

“You need to find your spark again. I can’t find it for you.”  
She nodded again. “I know. It’s just _hard._ Every time I think about competing it eats away at me. I love it still, obviously. It’s just… I’m just tired.”

“I understand. ‘Thari and I are here to support you, but you’ve got to figure it for yourself. Maybe it’s time to find something new to skate for.”

“Yeah… okay. I can try.”

“That’s all I ask.” He smiled down at her, for once not caring to hide the fondness he held for the girl. “For now, focus on your technical elements. It’s okay to be rusty. Just work on it. Maybe next week we can work with Ethari on upping your interpretive component scores. Now, why don’t we-”

Runaan’s phone buzzed again and he retrieved it from his pocket. “Ah, that’ll be Ethari.” He stood and extended a hand to Rayla. “Come on. Janai’s here. Get your mind off all the serious stuff and focus on your concepts.”

Rayla took Runaan’s hand and let him pull her up off the futon. “Wait, what? Did you schedule _another_ consultation without telling me?”

“Ehh, details.” he winked. “C’mon. We don’t want to keep her waiting.”

They found Janai sitting in the front lobby with Ethari, along with another person who didn’t seem much older than Rayla.

Janai paused mid-sentence when the pair caught her eye, and she stood to greet them. The younger person seated next to her hesitated, almost seeming conflicted, then followed suit and nodded respectfully as Rayla ad Runaan entered the room.

“Good to see you again, Rayla,” Janai said, moving to shake her hand. “I _assume-”_ she shot a look at Runaan, “-you did not know we were coming. I apologize for the intrusion.”

“Oh, uh,” Rayla glanced at Runaan, then back to Janai, and she shook the woman’s hand. “No, it’s, er, it’s fine. We needed to meet anyway.”

Janai nodded, then gestured to the person standing behind her. “This is Kazi, my assistant.” Kazi waved and pushed up their round glasses. “They will just be taking notes and observing. I hope that’s okay.”

“Of course!” Ethari said, clasping his hands together, “Why don’t you four have a seat and chat while I close up shop?”

“Thanks, love,” Runaan said, and Ethari shot him a thumbs-up.

Janai and Kazi retook their seats, and Runaan sat where Ethari had been, next to Janai. Rayla seated herself on the other end, beside Kazi, who waved at her with an awkward (however endearing) smile. Kazi pulled a tote bag from underneath their chair and took out a notepad and pen, then nodded to Janai.

The older woman turned to look at Rayla. “So, what concept did you have in mind?”

~

“Did you get everything, Kazi?”

Kazi nodded at Janai’s question and tucked their pen into the spine of the notepad. “Yes, plus the personal notes you asked for as well.”

“Good. Now, Rayla,” Janai said, “When will that friend of yours be finished with the base designs?”

“Should be in the next day or two, right?”

“I am curious to see what he comes up with, Kazi commented. “You have explained the concept for your programs to him?”

“Not in _full_ detail,” Rayla replied, “technically it’s still private information until all the competitors announce our themes publicly. I gave him enough to work off though.”

Well, now Rayla was wondering if she _had_ given him enough, or if she’d just made things harder for him. It was already a tall request, not to mention the fact that he wouldn’t even accept any money for it.

“Then, if it is okay for me to ask...” They glanced over at Janai, who nodded, then continued, “I am curious as to why you hired Miss Janai when you already know someone who can design things for you- not that we do not appreciate your commission!”

Runaan chuckled. “No, you’re fine. Rayla said she simply didn’t want Janai to get backed up on her other orders- this is a fairly urgent request. Better to allow her extra time to prepare materials than to push everything onto her plate at once.”

“Yeah,” Rayla nodded, “This is what we normally try to do anyway, ‘cause we always order so last minute. Besides, Callum’s just coming up with a few basic concept designs for you guys to expand on.”

“Do you know the status of that, by the way?” Janai asked.

Rayla shook her head. “I’m not sure, actually. I haven’t-”  
Before Rayla could finish, her phone _ding_ ed several times, rather insistently, and she retrieved it from the inner pocket of her jacket.

She felt herself light up at the name on the screen. “Oh! Speak of the devil.”

_-Callum, 7:08 p.m.-_

_ >Hey!!! Guess what I just finished! :D _

_ >:0 ayy _

_ >:p Hopefully they’re good! You wanna _ _  
__pick them up at the bakery tmw?_

 _ >wanna just come drop them _ _  
__off at our rink? designers here  
rn __anyway_

_ >Oh, yeah sure! Gimme like 20_

_> Yeah, np. tysm for this TT_

  
Rayla looked up from her phone and smiled across at Runaan. “He’s done with them! He’ll be here in a bit, if you guys don’t mind waiting.”

“Yes, of course, that works perfectly,” Janai said.

“Well then,” Runaan stood, “There’s no use just waiting around, is there? Will you excuse us for a bit until he gets here? Rayla should be using this time to practice.”

Rayla’s palm met her forehead. This man did not know the meaning of the word “downtime”.

“Oh! Of course, don’t let us stop you. Actually-” Janai glanced over at Kazi, then up at Runaan, “Is it alright if I come watch? Getting a feel for her as a skater may be beneficial to my design process.”

Rayla could have sworn Kazi’s face glowed up under the fluorescent lights. “Can we really come watch? I have never seen skating in person before!”

Runaan raised his eyebrow at Rayla, waiting for her answer. She looked at Kazi, practically bouncing in their seat, and shrugged. “I don’t see why not.”

~

Janai leaned forward against the barrier, next to Runaan, and Kazi was perched on top of it, eyes wide with awe at Rayla’s display. 

Spread eagle into a double salchow. Choreography, then a flying camel spin. She knew this routine well already, but it was far from perfect, therefore far from her own standards.

“She is very good,” Janai commented.

Runaan hummed in response, his eyes glued to Rayla. He clearly felt this was not up to par, though Janai could see nothing wrong (granted, she was no expert on skating, but she was no fool, either). At the very least, Kazi was enjoying themself. It certainly made it worthwhile to see them full of so much wonder and excitement, rather than their usual timidness.

Behind the trio, the door to the rink swung open, and Ethari led an awkward-looking young man wearing an aged red scarf inside.

The boy, who Janai assumed to be Callum, instantly locked his eyes with the center of the ice, where Rayla was crouched and contorted like a pretzel as she spun. She rose from her sitting position and pushed backwards out of the spin with the same grace Janai’s fingers held when she sewed. The movement by the door seemed to catch her attention, and she locked eyes with Callum, her lips forming a brighter smile than Janai thought the girl was capable of. Callum beamed back at her and waved, then held up the sketchbook that was tucked under his arm. Rayla didn’t delay in gliding over to the gate. She secured her blade guards and stood in front of her friend, a wide smile still gracing her face.

“You finished!”

“Well, hi to you too,” Callum quipped, “but yeah! I was having a _lot_ of trouble, like a _lot,_ but then today on my college tour- did I tell you about that? I think I told you about that- we went in the garden and there was this _statue_ and…” 

Callum continued to ramble and Janai leaned towards Runaan.

“They are close?” she asked.

Runaan shook his head. “They just met early this month, actually. You wouldn’t know it.”

“...so then in the car I _finally_ got an idea and-”

“Callum-” Rayla cut off his rant, “The designs?”

“Oh, right,” Callum chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “Here.”

He pulled out a few sheets tucked just behind the cover of his sketchbook and handed them to her.

“How are they, Ray?” Ethari asked from beside Runaan as she flipped through the pages.

“I don’t know if that’s what you were looking for,” Callum said, “I just kinda used the references you gave me and went ham with it. If they’re not any good I can-”

“What? Callum, _no,_ these look great, seriously.” She looked up from the sketches. “Thank you, really.”

Callum grinned back at her, and the two just stood there, looking at each other like idiots.

 _“Ahem.”_ Janai took a step forward, and they snapped out of it.

“Oh, Callum, this is Janai,” Rayla introduced, “she’s my designer.”

“Nice to meet you!” Callum said, nodding. Rayla handed the sketch pages off to Janai, and Callum turned back to her. “I’m gonna get going, Ez wanted help with something, but text me later, ‘kay?”

Rayla nodded. “Yeah! See you later”

Callum waved at her, smiled at the three behind her, and took his leave through the door.

“Thanks again!” Rayla called after him.

Janai shouldered her bag, sketches in hand. “We will get out of your hair, too. Thank you for these,” she held up the papers, “Kazi or I will reach out to Runaan for another consultation so you can approve the final designs.”

“Yes, you must be busy,” Runaan said, “Thank you for coming.”

Janai and Kazi said their goodbyes to the small family and Ethari guided them out. From behind them, Janai heard Runaan’s commanding voice, followed by a _loud_ groan. No rest for the weary. She could certainly relate.

Once outside of the studio, Janai stopped, flipping through the pages.

Kazi took a moment to notice she stopped walking, and turned around. “Qu'est-ce qui ne va pas?”

“Hm?” Janai looked up. “Oh, ce n'est rien.” She slipped the papers into her bag. “Come, let’s get you home. It has been a long day.”

~

Callum ruffled his damp hair with a towel and plopped down on the couch, propping his socked feet up on the coffee table. His phone buzzed, and he smiled at the notification.

_-Rayla, 9:17 p.m.-_

_ > I’m serious man, those designs? _ _  
__ >*chef’s kiss* _

_ >afkghk well I’m glad they’re okay _

_ >I know Absolutely Nothing about _ _  
__this stuff hnghjfg_

 _ >idk, I think janai might be scared _ _  
__for her job :p_

_ >Pfft, whatever you say _

_ >Oh hey, speaking of jobs _

_ >I’m not gonna be working much the _ _  
__next couple weeks bc my aunt’s friend_ _  
__corvus is picking up some shifts at the_ _  
__bakery. So if you wanna hang out at_ _  
__some point,,,_

 _ >:0 y e s ty I need a break from the _ _  
__unending runaan time_

_ >akfgjhd rip _

_ >:’) _ _  
__ >how about friday, when ezran comes _ _  
__for his lesson?_

 _ >Ohh yeah that’s fine! We can talk abt _ _  
__it tmw, you’re probably tired from_ _  
__practicing_

 _ >oh my god you are s u c h a change  
_ _of pace from runaan_

_ >maybe you should be my new coach _

_ >Very funny. Talk to you later- GO _ _  
__REST WOMAN_

_ >gn :p _

_ >dummy _

_ >gn _

  
_“‘Dummy’,”_ he mumbled. “Rude.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the first half-ish of this chapter was just kinda self-indulgent/venting based on my own experiences with doing a sport your whole life, and I figured it would be a good basis for what rayla's got going on too. that's kinda why starting at the first part with janai the quality kinda drops hngdkjgh  
> also, if anyone has any tips for how I can better format the text messaging portions to look better and be easier to read, feel free to let me know :p  
> like I said, we'll be getting back on track with the plot and character development starting next chapter. just had to get these few establishing bits out of the way. plenty of rayllum and skating to come. hope you enjoyed!


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HEY HI HOWDY SHIT FUCK IM ALIVE
> 
> took some creative liberties with downtown crossing and the corner mall so if you're from Boston,,,,shut up I haven't been there in a while  
> hope you enjoy!  
> (had to repost because of a huge ass mistake)

"Callum, if he wears socks in the shower one more time, I just might kill him."

"But it's  _ comfortable.  _ It's like the water is giving your feet a big warm hug!"

"You're not supposed to wear socks in the shower, Soren! It's  _ unnatural!" _

"Next you'll be saying that eating butter is  _ 'unnatural' _ too."

"Because it is! That is  _ not normal!" _

Callum refilled Claudia and Soren's coffees (for the third time) as they bickered. This week's riveting Friday Debate topic? The ethicality of wearing socks in the shower.

"Wait a sec," Claudia cut off her brother's newest argument mid-sentence and looked up at Callum, "Aren't you supposed to be, like, not working?"

"No harm in helping out when I'm free," Callum shrugged. "Corvus doesn't start til tomorrow anyway. I'm just here 'til ten and I'll help close later. I'm not gonna leave my dad alone with the place  _ all  _ day." Callum took Soren's (sadly) empty plate before his friend could continue hunting the tiny flakes left of his croissant. "Hey, shouldn't you be at school?" he asked Claudia.

"What? No, my noon class is first today, remember?"

"Why do  _ you _ care," Soren said. He dumped a packet of sweetener into his fresh cuppa. "Got a hot date to get to or something?"

"What- have you guys been hanging around Opeli?"

How was it that people  _ always  _ just so happened to say something like that every time he was going to see--

The dulcet sound of the bell on the door rang through the bakery. Soren, who faced the front of the shop, looked around Claudia at who had just entered. "Hey," he said, "isn't she that girl you told us about? With the hair and the purple eyes or something?"

"Huh?" Callum whipped around towards the door to see Rayla as she greeted his step-father. Though Harrow hadn't properly met Rayla, Callum had certainly talked enough about her that anyone close to him would know who the girl was with a single glance. It was almost as if all his friends and family already knew her, in some roundabout way.

"Rayla!" he called, and she turned towards him and smiled. Claudia and Soren shared a look.

"Hey." She waved as he approached her (with not so much of a glance to the two friends already in front of him. Betrayal, really). "You and Ez ready to head out?" she jerked her head towards the door. "'S about that time."

Callum pulled his phone out of his pocket- it  _ was  _ just about ten o'clock. "Oh yeah, lemme tell him."

He tapped out a message, and moments after hitting send, there was a light thud overhead, followed by the faintest sound of barking. Footsteps seemed to grow near, then the door behind the counter swung open, and out came Ezran, dressed for his skating lesson. Harrow turned around and pulled a bagel seemingly out of nowhere to hand to his son.

“Have fun,” he said as Ezran made his way to the older two standing by the door. He looked to Callum. "Keep me posted, okay?"

Callum nodded. "Yep! If you need any help you can just grab one of these geniuses." He jabbed a thumb at Claudia and Soren, who evidently heard him, as Claudia turned around in her seat and stuck out her tongue at Callum's back. Rayla smiled at the amusing exchange.

Harrow chuckled and drew car keys from his pocket. He tossed them over the counter to Callum, who caught them with  _ utmost  _ grace (read: they almost hit him square in the nose). Ezran headed out the door, Rayla trailing and holding it open for him. 

"See you later," Callum told Harrow. He shot his friends a goofy pair of finger guns, and Harrow waved to Rayla, who returned it with a smile and nod. 

The door swung closed behind the trio as Soren took a loud sip of his coffee. Claudia chewed a piece of her bagel.

"Looks like Callum's found a new hobby," she smirked. 

"Huh?"

_ "Rayla,  _ Soren." She turned and looked out the window at Rayla and Callum laughing together, with Ezran's form (and hair) bouncing alongside them. "He finally found something that gets him out of his room."

"Rayla, did you walk over here?"

"Hm?" Rayla turned in the passenger's seat to look at Ezran, sitting in the back.

"Like, all the way from the studio?"

"Oh, no," she waved a hand, "I didn't go yet this morning, I just walked over from my apartment. It's only a couple miles."

“Ez is probably just in disbelief,” Callum said from the driver’s seat, “his stubby little legs can’t exactly travel that far.”

“I  _ was  _ a boyscout, once upon a time, you know. And who was it that got winded halfway up a mountain trail even  _ after _ stopping to pet  _ every. Single. Dog  _ that we passed by?”

“Puppers must be pet! Tis an important obligation.”

"Alright kids, settle down," Rayla interrupted their rigorous debate.

"I'll have you know I'm a legal adult, thank you very much."

"Callum, you haven't even been allowed to drink for two months, I'd hardly call you an adult."

A silence settled over the three as Rayla thought over her words.

"Wait, oh-  _ ohh.  _ It’s 21 here, huh.”

Ezran snickered. “What, have you ever drank Rayla? You’re like a year older than Callum, right?”

“Runaan’s always kept the stuf far away from me,” Rayla shrugged, “Says it's not good for an active athlete or whatever. 

“That did not answer the question,” Callum said.

“I think we both know that answer already.”

“You are a horrible influence, I hate you.”

As Ezran lost his everloving mind, Callum pulled into a parking space behind the studio. Ezran grabbed his water bottle and hopped out of the car.

“Dad’ll walk over on his lunch break to pick you up, okay?” Callum told him through his open window, “Be good.”

“Nah, behavin’s boring,” Rayla said, leaning across Callum to talk to Ezran (Callum was only slightly offended at the invasion of personal space), “Give Ethari hell if you’ve gotta.”

Callum rolled his eyes, and Ezran giggled. He gave Rayla a two-finger salute (ignoring Callum, of course. Karma.) and turned to head in the studio. Once Callum saw him go in, Rayla looked over at him.

“So? Kid’s off to school, where to now?”

“Hm, not sure. We probably should’ve planned that, honestly.”   
“Probably.”

“Anywhere you’ve been itching to go since you got here?” Callum asked as he backed out of the parking spot.

“Eh, I dunno. I don’t really know much about what’s around here. So… any popular hangout spots for you?”

Callum thought for a moment. His childhood wasn't exactly full of grand adventures and group hangouts. Claudia and Soren had always been around, but they were more like siblings than friends at this point, so he didn't think they really counted. Regardless, Callum grew up here in Downtown, and he knew it like the back of his hand.

“Downtown Crossing is about two miles from here. It’s this big shopping strip. Popular with tourists and locals.”

Rayla nodded, and Callum could swear he caught a hint of a suppressed smile.

“That’s good. Stuff like that’ll help me figure out where the hell I am, right?”

Callum turned out of the parking lot and onto the road, which was steadily flowing with more cars. "You've been waiting for a chance to get out and explore, huh?"

Rayla glanced over at him and shook her head. He was too good. 

"Yeah. Something like that at least."

Callum didn't push the conversation any further and instead started focusing on driving. Something Rayla came to notice very quickly after moving here was that there was  _ always  _ traffic. And the drivers weren’t polite about how they got to their destination. It was no wonder she saw so many people crowding the sidewalks every day, hustling to and fro. So why-

"How come you drive everywhere?" she asked after a particularly angry car horn sounded somewhere in the distance. "City driving sucks ass."

Callum shrugged and navigated around a small pothole. "Ez really doesn't like walking too far. Figured I wouldn't make you walk either, and I had a feeling we'd stay close enough that it'd be pointless to take the red line."

Rayla simply nodded, not asking what on earth the "red line" is. She‘d find out eventually if it was important (it kinda really is, but that's fine).

A slow-moving fifteen minute drive later, Callum parked alongside other cars on the curb of a quiet side street. Rayla stepped out onto the mostly empty (for once) sidewalk and surveyed her surroundings. There were a few blank storefronts, and the asphalt of the road was greyed but unbothered- old but seldom used. The sign at the corner of the street read ‘Hawley Street’.

“Lovely place,” she commented as Callum walked up next to her. “Quaint.”

Callum smirked and rolled his eyes. “C’mon,” he said, taking the lead and heading down the sidewalk, “I think you’re gonna like it.”

Rayla fell into step next to him. “Why’s that?”

“You just remind me of- someone,” he shrugged (he was  _ not  _ going to make this hangout as depressing as they usually turned out), “This was one of her favorite places to take me when she had time.”

Rayla nodded. She thought as they continued walking.  _ She…  _ A past girlfriend? No, Callum didn’t seem the type to romance women left and right. Then… his-

“We’re here!”

Rayla looked up. After a short walk, they’d arrived at an intersection. The two criss-crossing roads were paved with brick, and though there were sidewalks, pedestrians wandered freely, as no cars traversed the narrow streets. People filled the walkways, office workers and university students hustling to their destinations, using the area as a passthrough. Rayla immediately recognized which shoppers were tourists and which were locals, having lived for so many years in Scotland’s biggest tourist city herself. There was a bright yellow sign with thick lettering wrapped around the corner of one of the buildings which read, “The Corner Mall”. Shops lined the walkways in every direction- clothes stores and consignment shops and eateries. The streets were neither too crowded nor uncomfortably empty and the atmosphere held a sense of purpose, but not chaos. A comfortable business. Rayla hoped it would stay that way.

She looked back at Callum, a gentle smile on his lips as he viewed the familiar surroundings. There was almost a sparkle in his emerald eyes, the same way he looked the very first time they met, when he showed her his sketches at the rink. She took a moment to notice the small curls dancing around his ears, the light freckles on his cheeks she could barely make out.

“So?” he said, turning to her. She whipped her head away- had she been staring? If she had been- which was absolutely not the case- he didn’t notice, and continued. “What’dya wanna do first?”

Rayla scanned the area, suddenly overwhelmed by the expectation of making a decision.

So she shrugged. Callum smiled at her (not that he had stopped). 

“C’mon then,” he grabbed her wrist and pulled her after him down one of the streets- the sign read ‘Washington Street’. “Let’s just walk then. If you wanna go in somewhere let me know.”

Rayla followed after him, and the warmth of his hand lingered and tingled on her wrist even after he let go. 

“It’s a lot different here,” she observed as they walked. “I mean, it’s kinda similar to Edinburgh, but…” she shrugged. “Atmosphere is different. Not in a bad way! Just… I dunno. Unfamiliar, I guess. Lots of stores and stuff I don’t recognize.”

“Well, that’s part of why we’re here, right? So that you get to know this place better.” He nudged her. “What’s one you’ve never heard of? We’ll go there first.”

Rayla hummed and looked around at the buildings, all so close together, as if competing for space. On the right, she spotted a circular orange sign with blue lettering. Through the glass doors, the interior looked dark, but an ‘open’ sign glowed through the window. She pointed. Callum followed her gaze, and he gasped. Rayla could swear she’d just offended his heritage. 

_ “You’ve never heard of Dave and Buster’s?!”  _ he practically squeaked.

“Was… I supposed to?”

_ “What is your life??” _

Next thing she knew, Callums hand was tugging at her wrist again, and he pulled her inside the wide building.

“Rayla? Welcome to Dave and Buster’s Arcade.”

_ Oh _ , Rayla liked this.

The ceiling lights were shut completely off, just as Rayla had seen, but plenty of light filled the space, emanating from the various consoles and machines filling every inch of the arcade. Shooters, VR games, tabletop sports, anything Rayla could possibly come up with, this place had it all. Was she seeing god?

Her eyes widened at the sight, and an adult woman became a child again.

Her face lit up.  _ “This. Is. Awesome.” _

“Isn’t it?” Callum pulled her deeper inside, into the thrall of screens and games. Rayla finally noticed he hadn’t let go of her wrist yet. The thought sent a tingle up her arm. His grasp  _ was  _ warm, and gentle, and- she shook her head. Oh look, shiny shooty machines, when did those get there!

After purchasing a game pass, the pair wound up in front of a rather simple machine, its edges lit up by colorful LED lights. 

“Basketball, huh?” Rayla looked at Callum with teasing skepticism, “Never took you for the athletic type.”

He rolled his eyes at her, and after swiping the pass into the machine, it fed out six half-sized basketballs, and the rim of the hoop at the back of the machine lit up with blinking lights of its own. “Hey, I’m not  _ that  _ incompetent. All the time.”

Rayla cackled as Callum picked up one of the balls. He drowned her evil, squeaky, floating (ahem, focus sir) laughter out of his head and trained his eyes on the hoop. He bounced slightly on the balls of his feet, then pushed the small ball off of his fingertips. It soared slowly, slowly…

And bounced off the back wall.  _ Underneath  _ the net.

Rayla snorted once, trying to hold in her guffaws, but broke into peeling, unembarrassed laughter, unable to contain her amusement at Callum's utter failure. 

"Step aside," she breathed, wiping a tear from her eye. 

She grabbed a basketball and took the shot, no flare or fanfare. It swooshed straight into the net to be met with a celebratory song, and the lights of the rim blinked new colors. She turned to Callum, hand on her hip and a smirk on her lips.

“Lucky shot,” Callum said (he’s just salty).

_ “Tch.”  _ Rayla took hold of another ball. She gave a little hop this time, and again, the ball arced straight through the hoop.

Callum gawked at the machine feeding out a steady stream of tickets as Rayla scored point after point with the remaining balls.

"Are you just  _ naturally  _ good at all sports or…”

"Well it's true, I am good at pretty much  _ everything." _

_ Right up until it actually matters.  _

Rayla scored her last basket and collected the tickets. She stuffed them in her pocket. “C’mon,” she said, walking away from the basketball machine, “Let’s find something that’s  _ actually  _ a challenge.”

_ Getting cocky, are we?  _ “Oh, you’re on.”

Over the next hour, Rayla and Callum darted from game to game, and, as Rayla expected, her friend lost every single one of them  _ miserably.  _ First person shooters, race simulators, even air hockey. The two of them playing DDR was certainly a spectacle to behold for anyone observing- Callum’s awkward stiffness matched up against the trained footwork of an olympic level skater? There was never even a competition.

Now they stood in front of the prize counter, the mountain of tickets Rayla won piled on top.

“Well?” Callum said, “Pick anything you like.”

Rayla’s eyes scanned the wall skeptically- had she never done this before? Her bright eyes zeroed in on a prize of the wall, by far not the largest, maybe the size of a pillow, but  _ absolutely  _ worth it, in Rayla’s opinion. She pointed.

_ “That one.” _

They were a sight to see: a grown ass woman walking through Boston with a dragon plushie under her muscled arm while her friend strolled alongside her sipping on a slurpee.

“What’re you gonna name him?” Callum asked.

“Hm?” Rayla lifted the blue plush in front of her. “Oh, I dunno.”

“Kinda reminds me of my dog,” he observed.

“Your  _ dog?”  _ Rayla looked at the goofy ‘w’ shaped smile on its face, with its tongue sticking out at the corner. “What, that grumpy old man dog? Bait?”

“What? No, Z-” Callum paused and thought for a moment.  _ “Oh my god I didn’t tell you.” _

Rayla raised an eyebrow.

“We got a new dog last week.”

“You  _ WHAT?!  _ And you didn’t tell me.” She brought a hand to her chest, feigning hurt.  _ “Betrayal.” _

“I’m  _ sorry.” _

“Do you at least have a picture?”

Callum fumbled his phone out of his pocket and pulled up his text conversation with Ezran. He opened the image his brother sent the previous day and held it out to her. “His name’s Zym.”

Her jaw dropped. “You got a dog  _ that cute  _ and you forgot to tell me? Asshole. I saw you like three days ago!”

“I  _ forgot,  _ we kinda had other things to focus on.”

_ “Still.” _

Callum swiped to the next picture for her. The pomeranian was looking straight into the camera, tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. He was almost grinning.

“What a wee  _ darling.  _ One day soon I am coming over to your house and I am  _ going  _ to steal that good boy.”

Callum chuckled. “My dad posted about him on Facebook. We’re gonna see if anyone’s looking for him. I mean… he was tied on a fence when Ez found him, but you never know. If no one responds we’re checking with family friends to see if anyone wants to take him. There’s not enough room in the apartment for all his energy.”

Rayla nodded as Callum put his phone away. She tucked the dragon- now named ‘Zym’- back under her arm and reached across Callum, tilting his slurpee towards her and taking a sip from the straw.

“Rude.”

“That’s what you get.”

They turned onto another street, much narrower than the one they were on, but crowded with more people. Shoppers bounced between the many stores and students stood chatting in the walkways. There was plenty of room to walk about, but the sight of all the bobbing heads and the feeling of being caught in the middle of the sea of people was almost nauseating to Rayla. She clutched Zym ever so slightly tighter under her arm, and with her other hand, she began scratching at her palm with her nails, hand curled tight. Callum seemed unbothered- it made sense, he’d grown up here after all, but for Rayla, she was in a new environment with new faces, a different sky above her head and a different skyline somewhere in the distance.

A man in a suit bumped into her shoulder, and Rayla’s hand shot up, grabbing the edge of Callum’s sleeve.

He looked over at her upon the sudden contact. “What’s-”  _ Oh. _

Rayla’s eyes were bugged out and her arm tremored around her prize. Her grip on Callum’s sleeve grew tighter, and she pushed herself closer to him.

He leaned towards her ear, speaking only to her. “Hey.” His voice was gentle as he placed a hand at the small of her back. “It’s alright. C’mon.”

Rayla looked at him, eyes wide, and he took her hand. He squeezed it lightly, his grip firm and supportive. Keeping her close, Callum led her through the crowd and to the sidewalk. They walked along the storefronts until the next corner, and Callum turned, then turned again. He brought her into a small alleyway which ended at a dead end, A few older wooden and brick storefronts lined the stone pathway, and pots of flowers decorated the middle of the walk. ‘Winter Place’, Rayla read from the door of a building. Even in her current state, she still thought it beneficial to remember street names and what they looked like. Callum sat her down on a median, in between pots of plants, then stepped back a bit, giving her space to breathe.

“A little overwhelmed?”

Rayla nodded. She breathed deeply, controlled.  _ In for three. Hold for four, out for five.  _ She knew this routine. After a few quiet moments, her knuckles loosened a bit on the fabric of her pants, and her breathing was mostly steady, if not a bit shaky.

“Better?”

Rayla nodded again. Callum took a few steps forward, moving to sit, but not wanting to crowd her. She looked up at him and nodded, appreciative, and he sat next to her, bumping his leg lightly against hers. 

“Sorry-” she started, but Callum cut her off.

“Don’t, you’re fine.” He placed his hand on her back again, testing the waters, and when she gave no negative reaction, he rubbed gentle circles. “I get it. I used to get overstimulated all the time here when I was younger, but by the time Ez was old enough to walk around with us, I’d learned to adjust my brain.”

He let his hand fall from her back, then hesitated, before reaching to place it over the fist she was still making in her lap. He felt her death-grip on her pants instantly slacken. 

“Just breathe,” he said, “That’s what my mom always told me when this happened. I guess you already know that though.” A nod. “This happen a lot?”

“Yeah,” she said. Her voice was just a bit quieter than usual, shakier, but she spoke with no shortness of breath. “Where I lived- I mean, I lived in Edinburgh, y’know, the  _ capitol,  _ but our house was in a quiet neighborhood. Stockbridge. It’s old and small and quiet and everyone knows each other. Plus, y’know, highschool dropout. I didn’t exactly have the same social experience as other teenagers. It’s just… hard to adjust, I guess.”

Callum nodded as she talked. Best to let her bring herself back to a familiar place, maybe a quieter time- visit the place she grew up in before plunging back into the unknown.

“Performing in front of a big crowd doesn’t have that same effect?”

“Nah. Been doing that my whole life. And when you’re- or at least, when  _ I’m  _ skating, I sorta dissociate. Most of the time I don’t even notice the audience until I mess up.”

That was how it  _ used  _ to be, anyways. But in the last year of skating, all she could ever think about was the eyes boring into her, the expectations they glared at her which she could never meet.

Rayla looked down at their hands. “Thanks, Callum, for noticing.” She smiled at him. “And I know you said not to apologize but-”

He shoved a finger from his free hand to her lips. “Don’t you dare, young lady.”

“I’m older than you, dummy, she spoke against his finger. Her smile tickled against his skin, and his face grew warm.

He pulled his finger away. “Still. I probably don’t have much of a place to say this- I’ve only known you, what, a month?- But I can tell there’s a lot going through your head right now. So however much time, however much space you need, you’ve got it.”

Rayla chuckled. “Thanks, Cal. It really does mean a lot.”

_ “‘Cal’?” _

She shrugged, and Callum laughed. “You ready?” he asked, and she nodded. Callum stood and held out his hand to help her up. “C’mon. Let’s get something to eat.”

Callum brought Rayla through the least busy route he could think of, and they ended up right back where they started, at the corner of Washington. He led her into the building with the big yellow sign, “The Corner Mall”. The mall was busy, but not crowded. It was like any other shopping mall, just… miniature. There were a few stores, some she recognized and some she didn’t. Callum led her to the back section of the mall and under a neon sign reading “Food Court”. There were about ten different options for food- Chinese, Philly steaks, Thai- but of course, Callum and Rayla ended up in front of a generic fast food joint.

They sat at a table in the middle of the food court with their fries and burgers. Rayla picked at hers suspiciously for a moment, before picking it up and taking a bite.

“What, scared it’s poisoned?” Callum said, munching on a fry.

“In this country? You never know.”

Rayla finished chewing and looked down at where she had bitten. “Weird.”

“Hm?”

“Just different.”

“Well, I apologize if it isn’t to the liking of your oh so refined palette. You sure I’m not making you break some kind of skater diet or something?”

“No, dummy,” she snickered. “I probably should start watching what I eat though.” She picked up a fry. “Here’s to my last freebie, I guess.”

Callum smiled at her as she ate. He pulled out his phone and checked the time- just before noon. Ezran would be done with his lesson about now. 

“Hey, you sure I’m not keeping you from practicing or something?”

Rayla sipped her soda and shook her head. “Nah, I’ll practice later when Runaan and Ethari are done with teaching for the day. Runaan thinks I shouldn’t practice on my own too much.”

“How come?”

“Old habits. By myself I might not catch ‘em. Plus… I can get kinda worked up. Frustrated. You know.”

Callum nodded. “Yeah, I kinda noticed you were getting frustrated back in… what was last month, July something?-”

“The thirty-first,” she finished for him. “Your drawings were, like, the second best birthday present I got.”

Callum deadpanned and dropped the fry he was holding. “It was you  _ what.” _

“I mean, Ethari and Runaan made me-”

“Nonononono, back up. That was your  _ birthday?” _

Rayla nodded. “Nineteenth. Was the day after we moved here, too.”

Callum’s jaw dropped.  _ “It was your birthday and I missed it.” _

“I mean, we hadn’t even met yet, so-”

“I have failed you, friend.” Callum sighed dramatically and his head plunked onto the table. “I have forsaken thee.”

“I mean, you can’t feel  _ too  _ bad. My first girlfriend forgot my birthday twice and my  _ name  _ once.”

Callum’s head snapped up.

“Oh my god wait-- bi buddies?!”

“Bi buddies!”

They beamed at each other across the table.

“Okay wait how did you know,” Rayla asked, though her excitement made it come off as less of a question and more of a ‘tellmetellmetellme’.

Callum hesitated and glanced away from her. “...Okay, so first off, not a  _ word.” _

“Callum.”

“When I was, like, twelve…”

“Callum who is it.”

“You are  _ not  _ allowed to laugh.”

“Callum tell me.”

“...Okay. So. You know that guy I’ve told you about?”

“...You’re kidding me.”

“The one I’ve been friends with my whole life?”

_ “Him?” _

“He was at the bakery with his sister when we left, the one I was talking to.”

“Callum my dear friend, I love you, but  _ please  _ tell me you didn’t have a crush on-”

“It wasn’t a crush!”

“-on that big-faced himbo-”

“I  _ admired  _ him, like, that ‘Cool-Older-Kid-You-Wanna-Be-Like’ type thing. And so then I was like, ‘well damn, guys are an option too’.”

“Callum, your taste in men is  _ obscene.  _ Your gay awakening was seriously- I  _ cannot  _ believe you had a crush on-”

“It was not a crush!”

“Whatever you say, pal.”

“Six years ago!”

“I said whatever you say.”

If a person could verbally keyboard smash, that was what Callum did.

“I hate you,” he said.

“No, you don’t.”

He sighed. “No, I don’t.”

Rayla chuckled, and he reached across the table to punch her shoulder. “Fine, who’s yours?”

Rayla thought for a moment. “‘Nother professional skater I used to go to school with- y’know, when I actually went to school. When we were 16- so, three years ago now?- we went to this trainin’ thing in England, and we dated for the couple weeks we were there.”

_ “Ooo,  _ training camp drama.”

She nudged him. “Dork. But, pretty much. Didn’t last though, we’ve always been like… I guess you could say rivals? And we kinda ended up realizing we didn’t  _ actually  _ fancy each other like that.”

“Rivals to lovers, 200k slowburn. Angst ending.”

“Oh my god, shut  _ up.  _ But yeah, now we’re just real competitive, but at least we’re not at each other’s throats.”

“What’s her name?” Callum asked.

“The abbreviated version? Nyx.”

“And you said she’s a skater too, right? Is she gonna be in this… series thing you’re working towards?”

Rayla hummed. “Should be, I thought I saw her name. And she placed high enough recently that she shouldn’t have to do any prelim events.”

Callum picked up his burger and gave her a puzzled look. “Prelim events?”

“Hm? Oh, yeah.” Rayla took a sip of her drink. She was definitely doing better now. She’d still been shaking earlier, but now that he had her talking, her mind seemed more under her control. “Basically, if your world standing isn’t high enough by the time of the Grand Prix- this series- you have to do preliminary competitions to qualify for it. It’s based on how well you rank in events since the end of the last Grand Prix. I dunno if that made sense.”

“No, it does!” Callum nodded. “There's just tons of stuff about this that I just don't get yet."

"Not like you have to," Rayla shrugged, "Can still watch it without knowing a damn thing. You think people actually know how American football works?"

"I mean, yeah, but I  _ want  _ to know. It's like, y'know, important to you."

Rayla choked on the fry she’d started eating. She shot a look at Callum across the table- who apparently had no idea how she’d taken that, and was happily munching on his burger. Her face went flush.

“Dummy,” she mumbled.

Callum finished off his burger. “That is so rude. Why do you keep calling me that?”

“Because it’s true.”

“I mean I’m not denying that, but the rest of the world doesn’t need to know, too.”

Rayla stuck her tongue out at him and finished the last of her fries. She pulled her drink in front of her and slurped from the straw.

“You mentioned prelims, do you need to do any?” Callum asked.

Callum meant it in no malicious way, he was simply curious, and for once Rayla was able to say she felt her chest puff ever so slightly with the response she gave.

“Nope. Even though I haven’t been active in a while, I still actually managed to place well in the Four Continents championship last year, so I’m in a good spot for this year, at least statistically. Runaan does want to try and get me into a lower competition next month though, as a sort of warm-up since it’s been so long.”

Callum nodded. “So Runaan’s in charge, huh?”

“Yeah, mostly. Officially he’s my coach and manager, and Ethari is my choreographer, but it’s pretty much a flat power structure between the three of us- most of the time.”

Rayla finished her drink, and the two gathered their trash and stood. They returned their trays to be cleaned and threw out their garbage. As they got their things together to leave, back at the table, Rayla heard two voices from somewhere behind her.

_ “Mami, look! I think it’s her!” _

_ “Why don’t you go ask?” _

Steps pattered up behind her, and Rayla felt a tug at the hem of her shirt. She turned to see a young girl, no older than seven blinking up at her.

“Er… hi?”

“Are you Miss Rayla Burrows?” the girl asked, eyes wide.

Rayla nodded. She glanced beside her at Callum, who seemed unreactive at hearing her real last name, then turned back to the girl and gave an awkward smile. “Ah, yes! I am.”

Seeing Rayla’s What-Is-This-Creature dilemma, Callum crouched down to the girl’s level and smiled at her with the experience of an older sibling. “And what’s your name?” he asked her.

The girl stared at him for a moment, then looked back at Rayla. “Is he your boyfriend?”

Rayla stumbled on any words that might’ve been trying to escape her mouth, and Callum’s face went beet red. After finding the vocabulary the girl had so rudely stolen, Rayla composed herself and smiled. “Nope! He’s just my good friend-”

“Idalia!” a cross voice snapped. Rayla looked up to see the girl’s mother standing a few paces away, with an I’m-So-Sorry look crossing her features. “No seas grosera, vamos.”

The girl hurried back to her mother, waving at Rayla. “Bye, Miss Rayla! I’ll watch you this year!”

Her mother nodded to the pair and Rayla waved back at her. Callum stood and cleared his throat, the redness now gone from his face.

“That happen a lot?” he asked.

“What, getting recognized? Not at all. Skating isn’t all that popular, ‘specially compared to other sports. And I haven’t even been  _ relevant  _ for a year. I’m surprised a kid that young knew who I was.”

Callum nodded. And here, of all places? What were the chances?

“Well,” she said, “that means I’ve just got one more person to skate for this time.”

Callum studied her face as she gazed softly after the girl- Idalia. She may not have known how to compute interacting with a child, but something in her certainly seemed to soften.

“Come on,” Rayla said, picking up Zym. “We’ve got places to be!”

For the next few hours, Callum and Rayla bounced between all the different streets at Downtown Crossing, visiting shops and statues and more. At one point, Rayla pointed out a Dunkin’ Donuts, claiming they ‘didn’t have those in Scotland’. Callum, appalled, promptly bought her a drink, which she commented was much lighter and sweeter than the coffee back home.

It was nearly four when they started walking back to the car. Rayla yawned, not for the first time that afternoon.

“What, pooped out?” Callum said, fishing the keys out of his pocket as they walked back down Hawley Street. 

“Me? Never.”

They laughed, and Rayla bumped her shoulder against his.

“Hey,” she said. Her voice was gentle, and any joking had dripped out of her tone. “Thanks for this. For today. I needed it.”

“Callum looked at her and smiled. “Of course! And if you ever need to get away for a little bit, you know where to find me. What are friends for?”

The drive back was relatively quiet, Callum noticed. He glued his eyes to the road in front of him as two cars in another lane just barely missed each other.  _ Finally,  _ he rolled up to a red light and sat back to breathe for a moment. Rayla was right, city driving  _ did  _ suck ass.

He heard a weak grunt beside him and looked over at his friend. 

Rayla’s head leaned against the window, and her chest rose and fell with even breaths. Her eyelashes fluttered ever so slightly against her cheeks as she slept. 

He reached at the side of her seat, the one nearest to him, and fidgeted with one of the little levers. He leaned her seat back a few degrees, and she unconsciously adjusted, curling up as much as her seatbelt would allow. Instead of the wild energy and brash confidence he usually saw in her face, she looked peaceful. Almost child-like. He smiled at her closed eyes as she shifted and faced him, cheek squished up against the seat.

A horn honked behind him, and Callum snapped up at the windshield. The cars in front of him had begun moving under the green light. He glanced over at Rayla once more, trying to decide what to do with her- because waking her was  _ not  _ an option, in Callum’s book.

He could bring her back to the studio, maybe? No, if he remembered correctly, their last Friday lesson was always at four, and if Rayla wasn’t there practicing, Runaan and Ethari had no reason to stay. So what else could he do… hadn’t she mentioned Xadia street, that first time at the cafe? It was a longshot to assume he could figure out which house was hers, but… he could certainly try.

Callum found his way to Xadia Street. Just as Rayla said, it was only a couple miles from the bakery, yet it managed to seem distanced from the rest of the neighborhood. Oddly, for this area, it was a cul de sac, relatively small and quiet. The street was lined with independently standing houses, rather than apartments, which Callum thought strange. Though, he supposed if anyone could afford it, it would be the family hosting not one, but three international skaters. 

He coasted slowly down the street, searching for anything on the houses that could indicate which was Rayla’s. Sure enough, on the door of the house at the very end of the cul de sac, a tin crescent moon hung on a nail. 

He knocked on the door, which Ethari answered (thankfully), and explained how Rayla was dead asleep in his car at the moment. Ethari thanked him for bringing her home, patted his shoulder, and scooped Rayla up to bring her inside. 

Callum shook his head and smiled as he U-turned and pulled out of the street. Her sleeping face entered his mind for a moment, and he shook it away. What was  _ wrong  _ with him?

Rayla rolled over and groaned. She pulled her blanket over her shoulders and- wait, blanket?

Her eyes blinked open, and there she was, in her own bedroom. She shot up. She did  _ not  _ fall asleep in Callum’s car. Her face grew warm, and she dropped her head into her palms, kicking her legs under the blanket and letting out a shrill squeak. 

What was  _ wrong  _ with her?

She reached for her phone on her bedside table, then felt it still in her back pocket. Her lockscreen read ‘19:24’. Runaan was going to kill her.

She groaned and rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she rose from her bed. She combed at her hair with her fingers and made her way to the stairs.

Rayla thought back on the day- the  _ wonderful  _ day she’d had. It had been quite some time since she’d gotten to experience just being her, just being a person, a  _ kid.  _ Out to the mall with a friend? Well, that was just unheard of.

And she thought back to all they’d talked about, how  _ open  _ she’d been with him. He somehow had a way of turning every single wall Rayla built into nothing but dust.

But now that she thought about it… had she ever tried to keep him out at all?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> four weeks later ahaha. we can just blame it on the 6.5k word count (my usual goal is 3k). This chapter didn't go exactly as planned but it was pretty fun to write! I figured I should get things moving along for these two dumbasses. And hey, the wait is worth it for bi rayllum imo.  
> (side note, if you think I edited this shit you're crazy)
> 
> This will serve as this coming Monday's (March 1st) update, so the next chapter should be out around March 15th. I'm excited for where we go with the story next, and yes, we will learn why rayla was on edge about hearing her last name!
> 
> hope you guys enjoyed, and I hope your 2021 is going okay so far. make sure you eat and drink enough and get to bed before ungodly hours (basically all the advice rayla would give but never follow). thanks for reading, see you soon!

**Author's Note:**

> Feel free to follow the Instagram @ rayllum_skater_au to see updates and more! (art, character/outfit designs, etc)


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